Supporting home care for the dying: an evaluation of healthcare professionals' perspectives of an individually tailored hospice at home service.

Science.gov (United States)

Jack, Barbara A; Baldry, Catherine R; Groves, Karen E; Whelan, Alison; Sephton, Janice; Gaunt, Kathryn

2013-10-01

To explore health care professionals' perspective of hospice at home service that has different components, individually tailored to meet the needs of patients. Over 50% of adults diagnosed with a terminal illness and the majority of people who have cancer, prefer to be cared for and to die in their own home. Despite this, most deaths occur in hospital. Increasing the options available for patients, including their place of care and death is central to current UK policy initiatives. Hospice at home services aim to support patients to remain at home, yet there are wide variations in the design of services and delivery. A hospice at home service was developed to provide various components (accompanied transfer home, crisis intervention and hospice aides) that could be tailored to meet the individual needs of patients. An evaluation study. Data were collected from 75 health care professionals. District nurses participated in one focus group (13) and 31 completed an electronic survey. Palliative care specialist nurses participated in a focus group (9). One hospital discharge co-ordinator and two general practitioners participated in semi-structured interviews and a further 19 general practitioners completed the electronic survey. Health care professionals reported the impact and value of each of the components of the service, as helping to support patients to remain at home, by individually tailoring care. They also positively reported that support for family carers appeared to enable them to continue coping, rapid access to the service was suggested to contribute to faster hospital discharges and the crisis intervention service was identified as helping patients remain in their own home, where they wanted to be. Health care professionals perceived that the additional individualised support provided by this service contributed to enabling patients to continue be cared for and to die at home in their place of choice. This service offers various components of a hospice

Surface tailored single walled carbon nanotubes as catalyst support for direct methanol fuel cell

Science.gov (United States)

Kireeti, Kota V. M. K.; Jha, Neetu

2017-10-01

A strategy for tuning the surface property of Single Walled Carbon Nanotubes (SWNTs) for enhanced methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) and oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) along with methanol tolerance is presented. The surface functionality is tailored using controlled acid and base treatment. Acid treatment leads to the attachment of carboxylic carbon (CC) fragments to SWNT making it hydrophilic (P3-SWNT). Base treatment of P3-SWNT with 0.05 M NaOH reduces the CCs and makes it hydrophobic (P33-SWNT). Pt catalyst supported on the P3-SWNT possesses enhanced MOR whereas that supported on P33-SWNT not only enhances ORR kinetics but also possess good tolerance towards methanol oxidation as verified by the electrochemical technique.

Tailoring and field-testing the use of a knowledge translation peer support shared decision making strategy with First Nations, Inuit and Métis people making decisions about their cancer care: a study protocol.

Science.gov (United States)

Jull, Janet; Mazereeuw, Maegan; Sheppard, Amanada; Kewayosh, Alethea; Steiner, Richard; Graham, Ian D

2018-01-01

Tailoring and testing a peer support decision making strategy with First Nations, Inuit and Métis people making decisions about their cancer care: A study protocol.First Nations, Inuit and Métis (FNIM) people face higher risks for cancer compared to non-FNIM populations. They also face cultural barriers to health service use. Within non-FNIM populations an approach to health decision making, called shared decision making (SDM), has been found to improve the participation of people in their healthcare. Peer support with SDM further improves these benefits. The purpose of this study is to tailor and test a peer support SDM strategy with community support workers to increase FNIM people's participation in their cancer care.This project has two phases that will be designed and conducted with a Steering Committee that includes members of the FNIM and cancer care communities. First, a peer support SDM strategy will be tailored to meet the needs of cancer system users who are receiving care in urban settings, and training in the SDM strategy developed for community support workers. Three communities will be supported for participation in the study and community support workers who are peers from each community will be trained to use the SDM strategy.Next, each community support worker will work with a community member who has a diagnosis of cancer or who has supported a family member with cancer. Each community support worker and community member pair will use the SDM strategy. The participation and experience of the community support worker and community member will be evaluated.The research will be used to develop strategies to support people who are making decisions about their health. Tailoring and field-testing the use of a knowledge translation peer support shared decision making strategy with First Nations, Inuit and Métis people making decisions about their cancer care: A study protocol Background First Nations, Inuit and Métis ("FNIM") people face increased

Design of a Clinical Information Management System to Support DNA Analysis Laboratory Operation

OpenAIRE

Dubay, Christopher J.; Zimmerman, David; Popovich, Bradley

1995-01-01

The LabDirector system has been developed at the Oregon Health Sciences University to support the operation of our clinical DNA analysis laboratory. Through an iterative design process which has spanned two years, we have produced a system that is both highly tailored to a clinical genetics production laboratory and flexible in its implementation, to support the rapid growth and change of protocols and methodologies in use in the field. The administrative aspects of the system are integrated ...

Tailoring double Fano profiles with plasmon-assisted quantum interference in hybrid exciton-plasmon system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhao, Dongxing; Wu, Jiarui; Gu, Ying; Gong, Qihuang

2014-01-01

We propose tailoring of the double Fano profiles via plasmon-assisted quantum interference in a hybrid exciton-plasmon system. Tailoring is performed by the interference between two exciton channels interacting with a common localized surface plasmon. Using an applied field of low intensity, the absorption spectrum of the hybrid system reveals a double Fano lineshape with four peaks. For relatively large field intensity, a broad flat window in the absorption spectrum appears which results from the destructive interference between excitons. Because of strong constructive interference, this window vanishes as intensity is further increased. We have designed a nanometer bandpass optical filter for visible light based on tailoring of the optical spectrum. This study provides a platform for quantum interference that may have potential applications in ultracompact tunable quantum devices.

Neuropsychiatric Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Involvement: Towards a Tailored Approach to Our Patients?

Science.gov (United States)

Faria, Raquel; Gonçalves, João; Dias, Rita

2017-01-30

Neuropsychiatric involvement in systemic lupus erythematosus (NPSLE) is a complex condition that remains poorly understood, and includes heterogeneous manifestations involving both the central and peripheral nervous system, with disabling effects. There are several models to improve NPSLE diagnosis when a neurological syndrome is present. In the last couple of years, the growing knowledge of the role of cytokines and antibodies in NPSLE, as well as the development of new functional imaging techniques, has brought some insights into the physiopathology of the disease, but their validation for clinical use remains undetermined. Furthermore, besides the classic clinical approach, a new tool for screening the 19 NPSLE syndromes has also been developed. Regarding NPSLE therapeutics, there is still no evidence-based treatment approach, but some data support the safety of biological medication when classic treatment fails. Despite the tendency to reclassify SLE patients in clinical and immunological subsets, we hope that these data will inspire medical professionals to approach NPSLE in a manner more tailored to the individual patient.

Health information, behavior change, and decision support for patients with type 2 diabetes: development of a tailored, preference-sensitive health communication application

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Weymann N

2013-10-01

Full Text Available Nina Weymann,1 Martin Härter,1 Frank Petrak,2 Jörg Dirmaier11Department of Medical Psychology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, 2Clinic of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, LWL University Hospital, Ruhr-University Bochum, Bochum, GermanyPurpose: Patient involvement in diabetes treatment such as shared decision-making and patient self-management has significant effects on clinical parameters. As a prerequisite for active involvement, patients need to be informed in an adequate and preference-sensitive way. Interactive Health Communication Applications (IHCAs that combine web-based health information for patients with additional support offer the opportunity to reach great numbers of patients at low cost and provide them with high-quality information and support at the time, place, and learning speed they prefer. Still, web-based interventions often suffer from high attrition. Tailoring the intervention to patients’ needs and preferences might reduce attrition and should thereby increase effectiveness. The purpose of this study was to develop a tailored IHCA offering evidence-based, preference-sensitive content and treatment decision support to patients with type 2 diabetes. The content was developed based on a needs assessment and two evidence-based treatment guidelines. The delivery format is a dialogue-based, tunneled design tailoring the content and tone of the dialogue to relevant patient characteristics (health literacy, attitudes toward self-care, and psychological barriers to insulin treatment. Both content and tailoring were revised by an interdisciplinary advisory committee.Conclusion: The World Wide Web holds great potential for patient information and self-management interventions. With the development and evaluation of a tailored IHCA, we complement face-to-face consultations of patients with their health care practitioners and make them more efficient and satisfying for both sides. Effects of the

A counselor in your pocket: feasibility of mobile health tailored messages to support HIV medication adherence

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cook PF

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Paul F Cook,1 Jane M Carrington,2 Sarah J Schmiege,1 Whitney Starr,3 Blaine Reeder11University of Colorado College of Nursing, Aurora, CO, USA; 2University of Arizona College of Nursing, Tucson, AZ, USA; 3University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO, USAPurpose: Medication adherence is a major challenge in HIV treatment. New mobile technologies such as smartphones facilitate the delivery of brief tailored messages to promote adherence. However, the best approach for tailoring messages is unknown. Persons living with HIV (PLWH might be more receptive to some messages than others based on their current psychological state.Methods: We recruited 37 PLWH from a parent study of motivational states and adherence. Participants completed smartphone-based surveys at a random time every day for 2 weeks, then immediately received intervention or control tailored messages, depending on random assignment. After 2 weeks in the initial condition, participants received the other condition in a crossover design. Intervention messages were tailored to match PLWH’s current psychological state based on five variables – control beliefs, mood, stress, coping, and social support. Control messages were tailored to create a mismatch between message framing and participants’ current psychological state. We evaluated intervention feasibility based on acceptance, ease of use, and usefulness measures. We also used pilot randomized controlled trial methods to test the intervention’s effect on adherence, which was measured using electronic caps that recorded pill-bottle openings.Results: Acceptance was high based on 76% enrollment and 85% satisfaction. Participants found the hardware and software easy to use. However, attrition was high at 59%, and usefulness ratings were slightly lower. The most common complaint was boredom. Unexpectedly, there was no difference between mismatched and matched messages’ effects, but each group showed a 10%–15% improvement

Decision support systems for incurable non-small cell lung cancer: A systematic review

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Révész, D. (D.); Engelhardt, E.G. (E. G.); Tamminga, J.J. (J. J.); F.M.N.H. Schramel (Franz); B.D. Onwuteaka-Philipsen (Bregje); E.M.W. van de Garde (Ewoudt); E.W. Steyerberg (Ewout); Jansma, E.P. (E. P.); H.C. de Vet (Henrica C); V.M.H. Coupé (Veerle)

2017-01-01

textabstractBackground: Individually tailored cancer treatment is essential to ensure optimal treatment and resource use. Treatments for incurable metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) are evolving rapidly, and decision support systems (DSS) for this patient population have been developed to

Decision support systems for incurable non-small cell lung cancer : a systematic review

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Révész, D; Engelhardt, E G; Tamminga, J J; Schramel, Franz M N H; Onwuteaka-Philipsen, B.D.; van de Garde, E M W; Steyerberg, E.W.; Jansma, E P; de Vet, Henrica C W; Coupé, V.M.H.

2017-01-01

BACKGROUND: Individually tailored cancer treatment is essential to ensure optimal treatment and resource use. Treatments for incurable metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) are evolving rapidly, and decision support systems (DSS) for this patient population have been developed to balance

A new tailored scheme for the support of renewable energies in developing countries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moner-Girona, Magda

2009-01-01

Historically the promotion of renewable energy technologies in isolated areas has involved international donors or governments subsidising the initial capital investment. This paper proposes an alternative support mechanism for remote villages based on the generation of renewable electricity. This communication presents an evaluation of the Renewable Energy Premium Tariff (RPT) scheme, a locally adapted variation of the Feed-in Tariff tailored for decentralised grids of developing countries. The RPT scheme stimulates the deployment of renewable energy technologies by paying for renewable electricity generated. A good-quality performance is secured since the support is given based on the electricity produced by renewables, not for the initial capital investment. The mechanism has been designed to provide a cost-effective scheme for the introduction of renewable energy technologies to remote villages, to provide sustainable and affordable electricity to local users, to make renewable energy projects attractive to policy-makers, and concurrently decrease financial risk to attract private sector investment. (author)

FSW of Aluminum Tailor Welded Blanks across Machine Platforms

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hovanski, Yuri; Upadhyay, Piyush; Carlson, Blair; Szymanski, Robert; Luzanski, Tom; Marshall, Dustin

2015-02-16

Development and characterization of friction stir welded aluminum tailor welded blanks was successfully carried out on three separate machine platforms. Each was a commercially available, gantry style, multi-axis machine designed specifically for friction stir welding. Weld parameters were developed to support high volume production of dissimilar thickness aluminum tailor welded blanks at speeds of 3 m/min and greater. Parameters originally developed on an ultra-high stiffness servo driven machine where first transferred to a high stiffness servo-hydraulic friction stir welding machine, and subsequently transferred to a purpose built machine designed to accommodate thin sheet aluminum welding. The inherent beam stiffness, bearing compliance, and control system for each machine were distinctly unique, which posed specific challenges in transferring welding parameters across machine platforms. This work documents the challenges imposed by successfully transferring weld parameters from machine to machine, produced from different manufacturers and with unique control systems and interfaces.

Carbohydrates-tailored phase tunable systems composed of ionic liquids and water

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen Yuhaun; Wang Yige; Cheng Qingyan; Liu Xiaoli; Zhang Suojiang

2009-01-01

Carbohydrates were found to have substantial effects on tailoring phase tunable of ionic liquids (ILs) and water. Phase behaviors of 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium derivatives [C n mim]X (n = 2 to 10, X = Cl - , Br - , BF 4 - )-carbohydrate-H 2 O were systemically investigated. For hydrophilic ILs, 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate [C n mim]BF 4 (n = 3, 4), the homogeneous aqueous solution can be induced to separate two aqueous phases by addition of carbohydrate. For hydrophobic ILs, [C n mim]BF 4 (n = 5 to 10), the mutual solubility with water can be lowered by addition of carbohydrate. While 1-alkyl-3-methyl imidazolium chloride ([C n mim]Cl, n = 2 to 10) and 1-alkyl-3-methyl imidazolium bromide ([C n mim]Br, n = 2 to 10) aqueous solutions never form aqueous two-phase systems (ATPSs) with carbohydrate in the investigated temperatures ranging from (242.15 to 373.15) K. The high partitioning behavior of phenol in [C n mim]BF 4 (n = 3 to 10) (1) + carbohydrate (2) + H 2 O (3) shows that carbohydrate-tailored {IL + H 2 O} systems are feasible to be used as extraction systems, especially in biological and environmental engineering.

Collective-Intelligence Recommender Systems: Advancing Computer Tailoring for Health Behavior Change Into the 21st Century.

Science.gov (United States)

Sadasivam, Rajani Shankar; Cutrona, Sarah L; Kinney, Rebecca L; Marlin, Benjamin M; Mazor, Kathleen M; Lemon, Stephenie C; Houston, Thomas K

2016-03-07

What is the next frontier for computer-tailored health communication (CTHC) research? In current CTHC systems, study designers who have expertise in behavioral theory and mapping theory into CTHC systems select the variables and develop the rules that specify how the content should be tailored, based on their knowledge of the targeted population, the literature, and health behavior theories. In collective-intelligence recommender systems (hereafter recommender systems) used by Web 2.0 companies (eg, Netflix and Amazon), machine learning algorithms combine user profiles and continuous feedback ratings of content (from themselves and other users) to empirically tailor content. Augmenting current theory-based CTHC with empirical recommender systems could be evaluated as the next frontier for CTHC. The objective of our study was to uncover barriers and challenges to using recommender systems in health promotion. We conducted a focused literature review, interviewed subject experts (n=8), and synthesized the results. We describe (1) limitations of current CTHC systems, (2) advantages of incorporating recommender systems to move CTHC forward, and (3) challenges to incorporating recommender systems into CTHC. Based on the evidence presented, we propose a future research agenda for CTHC systems. We promote discussion of ways to move CTHC into the 21st century by incorporation of recommender systems.

Matrix supported tailored polymer for solid phase extraction of fluoride from variety of aqueous streams

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thakur, Neha; Kumar, Sanjukta A.; Wagh, D.N.; Das, Sadananda; Pandey, Ashok K.; Kumar, Sangita D.; Reddy, A.V.R.

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Th complexed with poly (bis[2-(methacryloyloxy)-ethyl]phosphate) as tailored polymer membranes. ► Membranes offered high capacity and selectivity for fluoride in aqueous media. ► Quantitative uptake (80 ± 5%) of fluoride. ► Fast sorption kinetics. ► Reusability of polymer membranes. - Abstract: Fluoride related health hazards (fluorosis) are a major environmental problem in many regions of the world. It affects teeth; skeleton and its accumulation over a long period can lead to changes in the DNA structure. It is thus absolutely essential to bring down the fluoride levels to acceptable limits. Here, we present a new inorganic–organic hybrid polymer sorbent having tailored fixed-sites for fluoride sorption. The matrix supported poly (bis[2-(methacryloyloxy)-ethyl]phosphate) was prepared by photo-initiator induced graft-polymerization in fibrous and microporous (sheet) host poly(propylene) substrates. These substrates were conditioned for selective fluoride sorption by forming thorium complex with phosphate groups on bis[2-methacryloyloxy)-ethyl] phosphate (MEP). These tailored sorbents were studied for their selectivity towards fluoride in aqueous media having different chemical conditions. The fibrous sorbent was found to take up fluoride with a faster rate (15 min for ≈76% sorption) than the sheet sorbent. But, the fluoride loading capacity of sheet sorbent (4320 mg kg −1 ), was higher than fibrous and any other sorbent reported in the literature so far. The sorbent developed in the present work was found to be reusable after desorption of fluoride using NaOH solution. It was tested for solid phase extraction of fluoride from natural water samples.

Development and Usability Testing of a Computer-Tailored Decision Support Tool for Lung Cancer Screening: Study Protocol.

Science.gov (United States)

Carter-Harris, Lisa; Comer, Robert Skipworth; Goyal, Anurag; Vode, Emilee Christine; Hanna, Nasser; Ceppa, DuyKhanh; Rawl, Susan M

2017-11-16

Awareness of lung cancer screening remains low in the screening-eligible population, and when patients visit their clinician never having heard of lung cancer screening, engaging in shared decision making to arrive at an informed decision can be a challenge. Therefore, methods to effectively support both patients and clinicians to engage in these important discussions are essential. To facilitate shared decision making about lung cancer screening, effective methods to prepare patients to have these important discussions with their clinician are needed. Our objective is to develop a computer-tailored decision support tool that meets the certification criteria of the International Patient Decision Aid Standards instrument version 4.0 that will support shared decision making in lung cancer screening decisions. Using a 3-phase process, we will develop and test a prototype of a computer-tailored decision support tool in a sample of lung cancer screening-eligible individuals. In phase I, we assembled a community advisory board comprising 10 screening-eligible individuals to develop the prototype. In phase II, we recruited a sample of 13 screening-eligible individuals to test the prototype for usability, acceptability, and satisfaction. In phase III, we are conducting a pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) with 60 screening-eligible participants who have never been screened for lung cancer. Outcomes tested include lung cancer and screening knowledge, lung cancer screening health beliefs (perceived risk, perceived benefits, perceived barriers, and self-efficacy), perception of being prepared to engage in a patient-clinician discussion about lung cancer screening, occurrence of a patient-clinician discussion about lung cancer screening, and stage of adoption for lung cancer screening. Phases I and II are complete. Phase III is underway. As of July 15, 2017, 60 participants have been enrolled into the study, and have completed the baseline survey, intervention, and first

Hacking commercial quantum cryptography systems by tailored bright illumination

Science.gov (United States)

Lydersen, Lars; Wiechers, Carlos; Wittmann, Christoffer; Elser, Dominique; Skaar, Johannes; Makarov, Vadim

2010-10-01

The peculiar properties of quantum mechanics allow two remote parties to communicate a private, secret key, which is protected from eavesdropping by the laws of physics. So-called quantum key distribution (QKD) implementations always rely on detectors to measure the relevant quantum property of single photons. Here we demonstrate experimentally that the detectors in two commercially available QKD systems can be fully remote-controlled using specially tailored bright illumination. This makes it possible to tracelessly acquire the full secret key; we propose an eavesdropping apparatus built from off-the-shelf components. The loophole is likely to be present in most QKD systems using avalanche photodiodes to detect single photons. We believe that our findings are crucial for strengthening the security of practical QKD, by identifying and patching technological deficiencies.

Development of a Tailored Methodology and Forensic Toolkit for Industrial Control Systems Incident Response

Science.gov (United States)

2014-06-01

for industrial control systems ,” in Proceedings of the VDE Kongress, 2004. [15] K. Stouffer et al., “Special publication 800-82: Guide to industrial...TAILORED METHODOLOGY AND FORENSIC TOOLKIT FOR INDUSTRIAL CONTROL SYSTEMS INCIDENT RESPONSE by Nicholas B. Carr June 2014 Thesis Co...CONTROL SYSTEMS INCIDENT RESPONSE 5. FUNDING NUMBERS 6. AUTHOR(S) Nicholas B. Carr 7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) Naval

Continuous tailoring activities in software engineering

OpenAIRE

Ribaud , Vincent; Saliou , Philippe

2004-01-01

International audience; Software activities belong to different processes. Tailoring software processes aims to relate the operational software processes of an organization to the effective project. With the information technology industry moving ever faster, established positions are undergoing constant evolutionary change. The failure of a complex tailoring process of a management information system is reported. There is a need to adopt software processes that can operate under constant cha...

Tailoring an intervention to the context and system redesign related to the intervention: A case study of implementing shared medical appointments for diabetes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lawrence Renée H

2008-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Incorporating shared medical appointments (SMAs or group visits into clinical practice to improve care and increase efficiency has become a popular intervention, but the processes to implement and sustain them have not been well described. The purpose of this study was to describe the process of implementation of SMAs in the local context of a primary care clinic over time. Methods The setting was a primary care clinic of an urban academic medical center of the Veterans Health Administration. We performed an in-depth case analysis utilizing both an innovations framework and a nested systems framework approach. This analysis helped organize and summarize implementation and sustainability issues, specifically: the pre-SMA local context; the processes of tailoring and implementation of the intervention; and the evolution and sustainability of the intervention and its context. Results Both the improvement intervention and the local context co-adapted and evolved during implementation, ensuring sustainability. The most important promoting factors were the formation of a core team committed to quality and improvement, and the clinic leadership that was supported strongly by the team members. Tailoring had to also take into account key innovation-hindering factors, including limited resources (such as space, potential to alter longstanding patient-provider relationships, and organizational silos (disconnected groups with core team members reporting to different supervisors. Conclusion Although interventions must be designed to meet the needs of the sites in which they are implemented, specific guidance tailored to the practice environment was lacking. SMAs require complex changes that impact on care routines, collaborations, and various organizational levels. Although the SMA was not envisioned originally as a form of system redesign that would alter the context in which it was implemented, it became clear that tailoring the

Design of a Clinical Information Management System to Support DNA Analysis Laboratory Operation

Science.gov (United States)

Dubay, Christopher J.; Zimmerman, David; Popovich, Bradley

1995-01-01

The LabDirector system has been developed at the Oregon Health Sciences University to support the operation of our clinical DNA analysis laboratory. Through an iterative design process which has spanned two years, we have produced a system that is both highly tailored to a clinical genetics production laboratory and flexible in its implementation, to support the rapid growth and change of protocols and methodologies in use in the field. The administrative aspects of the system are integrated with an enterprise schedule management system. The laboratory side of the system is driven by a protocol modeling and execution system. The close integration between these two aspects of the clinical laboratory facilitates smooth operations, and allows management to accurately measure costs and performance. The entire application has been designed and documented to provide utility to a wide range of clinical laboratory environments.

Uptake of Tailored Text Message Smoking Cessation Support in Pregnancy When Advertised on the Internet (MiQuit): Observational Study

OpenAIRE

Emery, Joanne L; Coleman, Tim; Sutton, Stephen; Cooper, Sue; Leonardi-Bee, Jo; Jones, Matthew; Naughton, Felix

2018-01-01

Background: Smoking in pregnancy is a major public health concern. Pregnant smokers are particularly difficult to reach, with low uptake of support options and few effective interventions. Text message–based self-help is a promising, low-cost intervention for this population, but its real-world uptake is largely unknown. Objective: The objective of this study was to explore the uptake and cost-effectiveness of a tailored, theory-guided, text message intervention for pregnant smokers (“MiQuit”...

Tailored support for type 2 diabetes patients with an acute coronary event after discharge from hospital: design and development of a randomised controlled trial.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kasteleyn, M.J.; Gorter, K.J.; Stellato, R.K.; Rijken, M.; Nijpels, G.; Rutten, G.E.H.M.

2014-01-01

Background: Type 2 diabetes mellitus patients with an acute coronary event (ACE) experience decreased quality of life and increased distress. According to the American Diabetes Association, discharge from the hospital is a time of increased distress for all patients. Tailored support specific to

Tailored support for type 2 diabetes patients with an acute coronary event after discharge from hospital - design and development of a randomised controlled trial

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kasteleyn, M.J.; Gorter, K.J.; Stellato, R.K.; Rijken, M.; Nijpels, G.; Rutten, G.E.H.M.

2014-01-01

Background: Type 2 diabetes mellitus patients with an acute coronary event (ACE) experience decreased quality of life and increased distress. According to the American Diabetes Association, discharge from the hospital is a time of increased distress for all patients. Tailored support specific to

Tailored educational supportive care programme on sleep quality and psychological distress in patients with heart failure: A randomised controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Chang, Yia-Ling; Chiou, Ai-Fu; Cheng, Shu-Meng; Lin, Kuan-Chia

2016-09-01

Up to 74% of patients with heart failure report poor sleep in Taiwan. Poor symptom management or sleep hygiene may affect patients' sleep quality. An effective educational programme was important to improve patients' sleep quality and psychological distress. However, research related to sleep disturbance in patients with heart failure is limited in Taiwan. To examine the effects of a tailored educational supportive care programme on sleep disturbance and psychological distress in patients with heart failure. randomised controlled trial. Eighty-four patients with heart failure were recruited from an outpatient department of a medical centre in Taipei, Taiwan. Patients were randomly assigned to the intervention group (n=43) or the control group (n=41). Patients in the intervention group received a 12-week tailored educational supportive care programme including individualised education on sleep hygiene, self-care, emotional support through a monthly nursing visit at home, and telephone follow-up counselling every 2 weeks. The control group received routine nursing care. Data were collected at baseline, the 4th, 8th, and 12th weeks after patients' enrollment. Outcome measures included sleep quality, daytime sleepiness, anxiety, and depression. The intervention group exhibited significant improvement in the level of sleep quality and daytime sleepiness after 12 weeks of the supportive nursing care programme, whereas the control group exhibited no significant differences. Anxiety and depression scores were increased significantly in the control group at the 12th week (p.05). Compared with the control group, the intervention group had significantly greater improvement in sleep quality (β=-2.22, pquality and psychological distress in patients with heart failure. We suggested that this supportive nursing care programme should be applied to clinical practice in cardiovascular nursing. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Tailoring of EIA-649-1: Definition of Major (Class I) Engineering Change Proposal

Science.gov (United States)

2015-05-15

MISSILE SYSTEMS CENTER TAILORING TAILORING OF EIA -649-1: DEFINITION OF MAJOR (CLASS I) ENGINEERING CHANGE PROPOSAL APPROVED FOR...PUBLIC RELEASE; DISTRIBUTION IS UNLIMITED 1 Tailoring of EIA -649-1: Definition of Major (Class I) ECP. 1. Intent of this Tailoring Document...This tailoring document remedies a requirements gap in the industry consensus standard, EIA -649-1: 2015. Specifically, this tailoring provides a

Tailoring exercise interventions to comorbidities and treatment-induced adverse effects in patients with early stage breast cancer undergoing chemotherapy: a framework to support clinical decisions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van der Leeden, Marike; Huijsmans, Rosalie J.; Geleijn, Edwin; de Rooij, Mariëtte; Konings, Inge R.; Buffart, Laurien M.; Dekker, Joost; Stuiver, Martijn M.

2018-01-01

Delivery of exercise interventions to patients with early-stage breast cancer undergoing chemotherapy requires complex clinical decisions. The purpose of this study was to develop a framework to support clinical decisions for tailoring exercise interventions to common comorbidities and cancer

A Decision Support System (DSS for Project Management in the Bio-diesel Industry

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alin Paul OLTEANU

2011-01-01

Full Text Available The European biodiesel industry is currently facing several challenges affecting the profitability of investment projects in the industry. Among these challenges are higher prices for oilseeds, which are the main input for biodiesel production, lower fiscal support by national governments for biodiesel producers and high price volatility of oil markets. Thus identifying all opportunities for optimizing the value chain and lower the production cost of biodiesel is a main requirement for an efficient project management in the biodiesel industry. The paper addresses this topic by developing a decision support system tailored to the needs of Romanian investors in biodiesel production. The system optimizes the main activities of the biodiesel value chain and supports the decision making process at management level. In addition the DSS enables the user to perform sensitivity analysis based on varying various input parameter.

Let us Get Real! Integrated Approach for Virtual Coaching and Real Time Activity Monitoring in Lifestyle Change Support Systems

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kulyk, Olga Anatoliyivna; op den Akker, Hendrikus J.A.; Klaassen, Randy; van Gemert-Pijnen, Julia E.W.C.; Hettinga, M; Smedberg, A

There is a fast growing number of eHealth systems aiming at supporting a healthy lifestyle. Tailored lifestyle coaching services offer individual users access to web portals where they can communicate about a growing number of ingredients of everyday life concern: physical activity, nutrition,

Tailoring of mobility advices to consumers. Executive summary; Tailoring van mobiliteitsadviezen aan consumenten. Managementsamenvatting

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

De Weerdt, I.; Jonkers, R. [ResCon, Haarlem (Netherlands)

2003-09-01

An outline is given of the options to apply so-called computer tailoring in the field of mobility. A feasibility study has been carried out for the realization of a computerized tailored mobility programme. Tailoring is a method, based on social-scientific theories on behavioral change, by means of which information is tailored to individual circumstances, preferences and motivation. [Dutch] De mogelijkheden van computer tailoring (tailoring is een methodiek die gebaseerd is op sociaal-wetenschappelijke theorieen over gedragsverandering, waarbij de aangeboden informatie is afgestemd op individuele omstandigheden, preferenties en motivaties) op het gebied van mobiliteit worden verkend. Er is een haalbaarheidsonderzoek uitgevoerd ter voorbereiding op de realisatie van een computer tailored mobiliteitsprogramma. In dit onderzoek is nagegaan: of consumenten belangstelling hebben voor informatie op maat over mobiliteit; waar consumenten zelf de meeste mogelijkheden zien om hun mobiliteitspatroon te veranderen (en dus meer duurzame mobiliteitsopties toe te passen); hoe het gedrag van consumenten m.b.t. mobiliteit d.m.v. een tailoring systeem gericht beinvloed kan worden; of er organisaties te vinden zijn die de exploitatie van een tailoring systeem m.b.t. mobiliteit op zich zouden willen nemen; of de ontwikkeling van een dergelijk systeem kosten effectief kan zijn.

Tailoring Systems Engineering Processes in a Conceptual Design Environment: A Case Study at NASA Marshall Spaceflight Center's ACO

Science.gov (United States)

Mulqueen, John; Maples, C. Dauphne; Fabisinski, Leo, III

2012-01-01

This paper provides an overview of Systems Engineering as it is applied in a conceptual design space systems department at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Marshall Spaceflight Center (MSFC) Advanced Concepts Office (ACO). Engineering work performed in the NASA MFSC's ACO is targeted toward the Exploratory Research and Concepts Development life cycle stages, as defined in the International Council on Systems Engineering (INCOSE) System Engineering Handbook. This paper addresses three ACO Systems Engineering tools that correspond to three INCOSE Technical Processes: Stakeholder Requirements Definition, Requirements Analysis, and Integration, as well as one Project Process Risk Management. These processes are used to facilitate, streamline, and manage systems engineering processes tailored for the earliest two life cycle stages, which is the environment in which ACO engineers work. The role of systems engineers and systems engineering as performed in ACO is explored in this paper. The need for tailoring Systems Engineering processes, tools, and products in the ever-changing engineering services ACO provides to its customers is addressed.

Design of a multicentre randomized controlled trial to evaluate the effectiveness of a tailored clinical support intervention to enhance return to work for gastrointestinal cancer patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Zaman, AnneClaire G N M; Tytgat, Kristien M A J; Klinkenbijl, Jean H G; Frings-Dresen, Monique H W; de Boer, Angela G E M

2016-05-10

Gastrointestinal (GI) cancer is frequently diagnosed in people of working age, and many GI cancer patients experience work-related problems. Although these patients often experience difficulties returning to work, supportive work-related interventions are lacking. We have therefore developed a tailored work-related support intervention for GI cancer patients, and we aim to evaluate its cost-effectiveness compared with the usual care provided. If this intervention proves effective, it can be implemented in practice to support GI cancer patients after diagnosis and to help them return to work. We designed a multicentre randomized controlled trial with a follow-up of twelve months. The study population (N = 310) will include individuals aged 18-63 years diagnosed with a primary GI cancer and employed at the time of diagnosis. The participants will be randomized to the intervention or to usual care. 'Usual care' is defined as psychosocial care in which work-related issues are not discussed. The intervention group will receive tailored work-related support consisting of three face-to-face meetings of approximately 30 min each. Based on the severity of their work-related problems, the intervention group will be divided into groups receiving three types of support (A, B or C). A different supportive healthcare professional will be available for each group: an oncological nurse (A), an oncological occupational physician (B) and a multidisciplinary team (C) that includes an oncological nurse, oncological occupational physician and treating oncologist/physician. The primary outcome measure is return to work (RTW), defined as the time to a partial or full RTW. The secondary outcomes are work ability, work limitations, quality of life, and direct and indirect costs. The hypothesis is that tailored work-related support for GI cancer patients is more effective than usual care in terms of the RTW. The intervention is innovative in that it combines oncological and

Active coatings technologies for tailorable military coating systems

Science.gov (United States)

Zunino, J. L., III

2007-04-01

The main objective of the U.S. Army's Active Coatings Technologies Program is to develop technologies that can be used in combination to tailor coatings for utilization on Army Materiel. The Active Coatings Technologies Program, ACT, is divided into several thrusts, including the Smart Coatings Materiel Program, Munitions Coatings Technologies, Active Sensor packages, Systems Health Monitoring, Novel Technology Development, as well as other advanced technologies. The goal of the ACT Program is to conduct research leading to the development of multiple coatings systems for use on various military platforms, incorporating unique properties such as self repair, selective removal, corrosion resistance, sensing, ability to modify coatings' physical properties, colorizing, and alerting logistics staff when tanks or weaponry require more extensive repair. A partnership between the U.S. Army Corrosion Office at Picatinny Arsenal, NJ along with researchers at the New Jersey Institute of Technology, NJ, Clemson University, SC, University of New Hampshire, NH, and University of Massachusetts (Lowell), MA, are developing the next generation of Smart Coatings Materiel via novel technologies such as nanotechnology, Micro-electromechanical Systems (MEMS), meta-materials, flexible electronics, electrochromics, electroluminescence, etc. This paper will provide the reader with an overview of the Active Coatings Technologies Program, including an update of the on-going Smart Coatings Materiel Program, its progress thus far, description of the prototype Smart Coatings Systems and research tasks as well as future nanotechnology concepts, and applications for the Department of Defense.

Computerised decision support systems for healthcare professionals: an interpretative review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kathrin Cresswell

2013-03-01

Full Text Available Purpose Computerised decision support systems are designed to support clinicians in making decisions and thereby enhance the quality and safety of care. We aimed to undertake an interpretative review of the empirical evidence on computerised decision support systems, their contexts of use, and summarise evidence on the effectiveness of these tools and insights into how these can be successfully implemented and adopted.Methods We systematically searched the empirical literature to identify systematic literature reviews on computerised decision support applications and their impact on the quality and safety of healthcare delivery over a 13-year period (1997–2010. The databases searched included: MEDLINE, EMBASE, The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects, The Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, The Cochrane Methodology Register, The Health Technology Assessment Database, and The National Health Service (NHS Economic Evaluation Database. To be eligible for inclusion, systematic reviews needed to address computerised decision support systems, and at least one of the following: impact on safety; quality; or organisational, implementation or adoption considerations.Results Our searches yielded 121 systematic reviews relating to eHealth, of which we identified 41 as investigating computerised decision support systems. These indicated that, whilst there was a lack of investigating potential risks, such tools can result in improvements in practitioner performance in the promotion of preventive care and guideline adherence, particularly if specific information is available in real time and systems are effectively integrated into clinical workflows. However, the evidence regarding impact on patient outcomes was less clear-cut with reviews finding either no, inconsistent or modest benefits.Conclusions Whilst the potential of clinical decision support systems in improving, in particular

Computerised decision support systems for healthcare professionals: an interpretative review.

Science.gov (United States)

Cresswell, Kathrin; Majeed, Azeem; Bates, David W; Sheikh, Aziz

2012-01-01

Computerised decision support systems are designed to support clinicians in making decisions and thereby enhance the quality and safety of care. We aimed to undertake an interpretative review of the empirical evidence on computerised decision support systems, their contexts of use, and summarise evidence on the effectiveness of these tools and insights into how these can be successfully implemented and adopted. We systematically searched the empirical literature to identify systematic literature reviews on computerised decision support applications and their impact on the quality and safety of healthcare delivery over a 13-year period (1997-2010). The databases searched included: MEDLINE, EMBASE, The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects, The Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, The Cochrane Methodology Register, The Health Technology Assessment Database, and The National Health Service (NHS) Economic Evaluation Database. To be eligible for inclusion, systematic reviews needed to address computerised decision support systems, and at least one of the following: impact on safety; quality; or organisational, implementation or adoption considerations. Our searches yielded 121 systematic reviews relating to eHealth, of which we identified 41 as investigating computerised decision support systems. These indicated that, whilst there was a lack of investigating potential risks, such tools can result in improvements in practitioner performance in the promotion of preventive care and guideline adherence, particularly if specific information is available in real time and systems are effectively integrated into clinical workflows. However, the evidence regarding impact on patient outcomes was less clear-cut with reviews finding either no, inconsistent or modest benefits. Whilst the potential of clinical decision support systems in improving, in particular, practitioner performance is considerable, such technology may

Tailoring of mobility advices to consumers. A determinants survey; Tailoring van mobiliteitsadviezen aan consumenten. Een determinantenonderzoek

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

De Weerdt, I.; Jonkers, R. [ResCon, Haarlem (Netherlands)

2003-08-01

An outline is given of the options to apply so-called computer tailoring in the field of mobility. A feasibility study has been carried out for the realization of a computerized tailored mobility programme. Tailoring is a method, based on social-scientific theories on behavioral change, by means of which information is tailored to individual circumstances, preferences and motivation. [Dutch] De mogelijkheden van computer tailoring (tailoring is een methodiek die gebaseerd is op sociaal-wetenschappelijke theorieen over gedragsverandering, waarbij de aangeboden informatie is afgestemd op individuele omstandigheden, preferenties en motivaties) op het gebied van mobiliteit worden verkend. Er is een haalbaarheidsonderzoek uitgevoerd ter voorbereiding op de realisatie van een computer tailored mobiliteitsprogramma. In dit onderzoek is nagegaan: of consumenten belangstelling hebben voor informatie op maat over mobiliteit; waar consumenten zelf de meeste mogelijkheden zien om hun mobiliteitspatroon te veranderen (en dus meer duurzame mobiliteitsopties toe te passen); hoe het gedrag van consumenten m.b.t. mobiliteit d.m.v. een tailoring systeem gericht beinvloed kan worden; of er organisaties te vinden zijn die de exploitatie van een tailoring systeem m.b.t. mobiliteit op zich zouden willen nemen; of de ontwikkeling van een dergelijk systeem kosten effectief kan zijn.

Computer-Tailored Student Support in Introductory Physics

Science.gov (United States)

Huberth, Madeline; Chen, Patricia; Tritz, Jared; McKay, Timothy A.

2015-01-01

Large introductory courses are at a disadvantage in providing personalized guidance and advice for students during the semester. We introduce E2Coach (an Expert Electronic Coaching system), which allows instructors to personalize their communication with thousands of students. We describe the E2Coach system, the nature of the personalized support it provides, and the features of the students who did (and did not) opt-in to using it during the first three terms of its use in four introductory physics courses at the University of Michigan. Defining a ‘better-than-expected’ measure of performance, we compare outcomes for students who used E2Coach to those who did not. We found that moderate and high E2Coach usage was associated with improved performance. This performance boost was prominent among high users, who improved by 0.18 letter grades on average when compared to nonusers with similar incoming GPAs. This improvement in performance was comparable across both genders. E2Coach represents one way to use technology to personalize education at scale, contributing to the move towards individualized learning that is becoming more attainable in the 21st century. PMID:26352403

Computer-Tailored Student Support in Introductory Physics.

Science.gov (United States)

Huberth, Madeline; Chen, Patricia; Tritz, Jared; McKay, Timothy A

2015-01-01

Large introductory courses are at a disadvantage in providing personalized guidance and advice for students during the semester. We introduce E2Coach (an Expert Electronic Coaching system), which allows instructors to personalize their communication with thousands of students. We describe the E2Coach system, the nature of the personalized support it provides, and the features of the students who did (and did not) opt-in to using it during the first three terms of its use in four introductory physics courses at the University of Michigan. Defining a 'better-than-expected' measure of performance, we compare outcomes for students who used E2Coach to those who did not. We found that moderate and high E2Coach usage was associated with improved performance. This performance boost was prominent among high users, who improved by 0.18 letter grades on average when compared to nonusers with similar incoming GPAs. This improvement in performance was comparable across both genders. E2Coach represents one way to use technology to personalize education at scale, contributing to the move towards individualized learning that is becoming more attainable in the 21st century.

High Excitation Efficiency of Channel Plasmon Polaritons in Tailored, UV-Lithography-Defined V-Grooves

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Smith, Cameron; Thilsted, Anil Haraksingh; Garcia-Ortiz, Cesar E.

2014-01-01

We demonstrate >50% conversion of light to V-groove channel plasmon-polaritons (CPPs) via compact waveguide-termination mirrors. Devices are fabricated using UV-lithography and crystallographic silicon etching. The V-shape is tailored by thermal oxidation to support confined CPPs.......We demonstrate >50% conversion of light to V-groove channel plasmon-polaritons (CPPs) via compact waveguide-termination mirrors. Devices are fabricated using UV-lithography and crystallographic silicon etching. The V-shape is tailored by thermal oxidation to support confined CPPs....

Tailored Porous Materials

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

BARTON,THOMAS J.; BULL,LUCY M.; KLEMPERER,WALTER G.; LOY,DOUGLAS A.; MCENANEY,BRIAN; MISONO,MAKOTO; MONSON,PETER A.; PEZ,GUIDO; SCHERER,GEORGE W.; VARTULI,JAMES C.; YAGHI,OMAR M.

1999-11-09

Tailoring of porous materials involves not only chemical synthetic techniques for tailoring microscopic properties such as pore size, pore shape, pore connectivity, and pore surface reactivity, but also materials processing techniques for tailoring the meso- and the macroscopic properties of bulk materials in the form of fibers, thin films and monoliths. These issues are addressed in the context of five specific classes of porous materials: oxide molecular sieves, porous coordination solids, porous carbons, sol-gel derived oxides, and porous heteropolyanion salts. Reviews of these specific areas are preceded by a presentation of background material and review of current theoretical approaches to adsorption phenomena. A concluding section outlines current research needs and opportunities.

The E-assessment burger: Supporting the Before and After in E-Assessment Systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anne Adams

2015-08-01

Full Text Available This paper describes a threshold concept-driven e-assessment system that supports teachers in writing effective formative multiple-choice questions, creating quizzes tailored to students’ learning pathways. The system, which has been co-designed with teachers, acts as the ‘bun’ on either side of an ‘e-assessment burger’ pedagogically scaffolding quiz creation (the top of the bun, integrating the quiz within personalized learning trajectories (the burger and feeding the results back to the learners and teachers to guide the direction of future learning pathways (the bottom of the bun. The evaluation with 26 students in 3 subjects across two schools identified that supporting the before and after e-assessment empowers a shift in teachers’ encouragement for student ownership of assessment, guiding their learning pathways. Teachers also provide insights into how the system scaffolding and visualisations inspired changes to sequencing learning and teaching practices. In conclusion the changing role of assessment within a school ecosystem is debated.

Tailor-welded blanks and their production

Science.gov (United States)

Yan, Qi

2005-01-01

Tailor welded blanks had been widely used in the automobile industry. A tailor welded blank consists of several flat sheets that were laser welded together before stamping. A combination of different materials, thickness, and coatings could be welded together to form a blank for stamping car body panels. As for the material for automobile industry, this technology was one of the development trend for automobile industry because of its weight reduction, safety improvement and economical use of materials. In this paper, the characters and production of tailor welded blanks in the market were discussed in detail. There had two major methods to produce tailor welded blanks. Laser welding would replace mesh seam welding for the production of tailor welded blanks in the future. The requirements on the edge preparation of unwelded blanks for tailor welded blanks were higher than the other steel processing technology. In order to produce the laser welded blank, there had the other process before the laser welding in the factory. In the world, there had three kinds of patterns for the large volume production of tailor welded blanks. In China, steel factory played the important role in the promotion of the application of tailor welded blanks. The competition for the supply of tailor welded blanks to the automobile industry would become fierce in the near future. As a result, the demand for the quality control on the production of tailor welded blanks would be the first priority concern for the factory.

Application-Tailored I/O with Streamline

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Bruijn, W.J.; Bos, H.J.; Bal, H.E.

2011-01-01

Streamline is a stream-based OS communication subsystem that spans from peripheral hardware to userspace processes. It improves performance of I/O-bound applications (such as webservers and streaming media applications) by constructing tailor-made I/O paths through the operating system for each

Development of patient-centric linguistically tailored psychoeducational messages to support nutrition and medication self-management in type 2 diabetes: a feasibility study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ellis RJB

2014-10-01

Full Text Available Rebecca J Bartlett Ellis,1 Ulla Connor,2 James Marshall21Indiana University School of Nursing, 2Indiana University School of Liberal Arts, International Center for Intercultural Communication, Indiana University, Indianapolis, IN, USA Purpose: This study evaluated the feasibility of developing linguistically tailored educational messages designed to match the linguistic styles of patients segmented into types with the Descriptor™, and to determine patient preferences for tailored or standard messages based on their segments. Patients and methods: Twenty patients with type 2 diabetes (T2DM were recruited from a diabetes health clinic. Participants were segmented using the Descriptor™, a language-based questionnaire, to identify patient types based on their control orientation (internal/external, agency (high/low, and affect (positive/negative, which are well studied constructs related to T2DM self-management. Two of the seven self-care behaviors described by the American Association of Diabetes Educators (healthy eating and taking medication were used to develop standard messages and then linguistically tailored using features of the six different construct segment types of the Descriptor™. A subset of seven participants each provided feedback on their preference for standard or linguistically tailored messages; 12 comparisons between standard and tailored messages were made. Results: Overall, the tailored messages were preferred to the standard messages. When the messages were matched to specific construct segment types, the tailored messages were preferred over the standard messages, although this was not statistically significant. Conclusion: Linguistically tailoring messages based on construct segments is feasible. Furthermore, tailored messages were more often preferred over standard messages. This study provides some preliminary evidence for tailoring messages based on the linguistic features of control orientation, agency, and affect

An electronic decision support system to motivate people with severe mental illnesses to quit smoking.

Science.gov (United States)

Brunette, Mary F; Ferron, Joelle C; McHugo, Gregory J; Davis, Kristin E; Devitt, Timothy S; Wilkness, Sandra M; Drake, Robert E

2011-04-01

Rates of cigarette smoking are high among people with severe mental illnesses compared with the general population (45%-90% versus 20%). The authors developed a Web-based computer decision support system that is tailored for use by people with cognitive deficits and is designed to stimulate motivation to quit smoking by using evidence-based treatment. This initial study used a quasi-experimental design to test the decision support system among a convenience sample of 41 smokers with severe mental illnesses. Researchers interviewed participants at baseline and two months later to assess for behaviors indicative of motivation to quit smoking. A negative binomial regression modeled the outcome and controlled for baseline group differences. Participants who used the decision support system were significantly more likely to show any behavioral motivation to quit smoking (such as meet with a clinician to discuss cessation, initiate cessation treatment, or otherwise attempt to quit) (67% versus 35%; χ(2)=4.11, df=41, p=.04). Further, using the decision support system increased by a factor of 2.97, or about 300%, the expected number of ways that a participant showed motivation. The encouraging results of this pilot study indicate that electronic decision supports may facilitate motivation to quit smoking and use of cessation treatment among people with severe mental illnesses.

Randomized controlled trial of a web-based computer-tailored smoking cessation program as a supplement to nicotine patch therapy.

Science.gov (United States)

Strecher, Victor J; Shiffman, Saul; West, Robert

2005-05-01

To assess the efficacy of World Wide Web-based tailored behavioral smoking cessation materials among nicotine patch users. Two-group randomized controlled trial. World Wide Web in England and Republic of Ireland. A total of 3971 subjects who purchased a particular brand of nicotine patch and logged-on to use a free web-based behavioral support program. Web-based tailored behavioral smoking cessation materials or web-based non-tailored materials. Twenty-eight-day continuous abstinence rates were assessed by internet-based survey at 6-week follow-up and 10-week continuous rates at 12-week follow-up. Using three approaches to the analyses of 6- and 12-week outcomes, participants in the tailored condition reported clinically and statistically significantly higher continuous abstinence rates than participants in the non-tailored condition. In our primary analyses using as a denominator all subjects who logged-on to the treatment site at least once, continuous abstinence rates at 6 weeks were 29.0% in the tailored condition versus 23.9% in the non-tailored condition (OR = 1.30; P = 0.0006); at 12 weeks continuous abstinence rates were 22.8% versus 18.1%, respectively (OR = 1.34; P = 0.0006). Moreover, satisfaction with the program was significantly higher in the tailored than in the non-tailored condition. The results of this study demonstrate a benefit of the web-based tailored behavioral support materials used in conjunction with nicotine replacement therapy. A web-based program that collects relevant information from users and tailors the intervention to their specific needs had significant advantages over a web-based non-tailored cessation program.

A porous ceramic membrane tailored high-temperature supercapacitor

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Xin; He, Benlin; Zhao, Yuanyuan; Tang, Qunwei

2018-03-01

The supercapacitor that can operate at high-temperature are promising for markedly increase in capacitance because of accelerated charge movement. However, the state-of-the-art polymer-based membranes will decompose at high temperature. Inspired by solid oxide fuel cells, we present here the experimental realization of high-temperature supercapacitors (HTSCs) tailored with porous ceramic separator fabricated by yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) and nickel oxide (NiO). Using activated carbon electrode and supporting electrolyte from potassium hydroxide (KOH) aqueous solution, a category of symmetrical HTSCs are built in comparison with a conventional polymer membrane based device. The dependence of capacitance performance on temperature is carefully studied, yielding a maximized specific capacitance of 272 F g-1 at 90 °C for the optimized HTSC tailored by NiO/YSZ membrane. Moreover, the resultant HTSC has relatively high durability when suffer repeated measurement over 1000 cycles at 90 °C, while the polymer membrane based supercapacitor shows significant reduction in capacitance at 60 °C. The high capacitance along with durability demonstrates NiO/YSZ membrane tailored HTSCs are promising in future advanced energy storage devices.

Context, confidentiality, and consent in tailored health communications: a cautionary note.

Science.gov (United States)

Orleans, C T

1999-01-01

This article highlights key contextual factors that emerge when the evolution of tailored health communications is viewed against the backdrop of dynamic changes in the nation's health care system--including the shift from fee-for-service medicine to managed care and the proliferation of direct-to-consumer and tailored marketing strategies in the pharmaceutical industry. It focuses on contextual variables with potential to significantly mediate the impact of personally tailored health advice--including those related to confidentiality, privacy, and informed consent and to the perceived aims, intents, and sources of tailored health messages. To protect the future of tailored health messages, more research attention must be given to defining these contextual factors and understanding the roles that they play and the ways in which they can be controlled to assure the best outcomes. Such research could point the way towards a set of empirical and ethical "best practices" based on a scientific understanding of how to maximize the benefits, and minimize the potential harms, of the widescale use of tailored health communications.

Deep Drawing of High-Strength Tailored Blanks by Using Tailored Tools

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thomas Mennecart

2016-01-01

Full Text Available In most forming processes based on tailored blanks, the tool material remains the same as that of sheet metal blanks without tailored properties. A novel concept of lightweight construction for deep drawing tools is presented in this work to improve the forming behavior of tailored blanks. The investigations presented here deal with the forming of tailored blanks of dissimilar strengths using tailored dies made of two different materials. In the area of the steel blank with higher strength, typical tool steel is used. In the area of the low-strength steel, a hybrid tool made out of a polymer and a fiber-reinforced surface replaces the steel half. Cylindrical cups of DP600/HX300LAD are formed and analyzed regarding their formability. The use of two different halves of tool materials shows improved blank thickness distribution, weld-line movement and pressure distribution compared to the use of two steel halves. An improvement in strain distribution is also observed by the inclusion of springs in the polymer side of tools, which is implemented to control the material flow in the die. Furthermore, a reduction in tool weight of approximately 75% can be achieved by using this technique. An accurate finite element modeling strategy is developed to analyze the problem numerically and is verified experimentally for the cylindrical cup. This strategy is then applied to investigate the thickness distribution and weld-line movement for a complex geometry, and its transferability is validated. The inclusion of springs in the hybrid tool leads to better material flow, which results in reduction of weld-line movement by around 60%, leading to more uniform thickness distribution.

Deep drawing simulation of Tailored Blanks

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van den Berg, Albert; Meinders, Vincent T.; Stokman, B.

1998-01-01

Tailored blanks are increasingly used in the automotive industry. A tailored blank consists of different metal parts, which are joined by a welding process. These metal parts usually have different material properties. Hence, the main advantage of using a tailored blank is to provide the right

Development of a computer-tailored nutrition and physical activity intervention for lower-educated women of Dutch, Turkish and Moroccan origin using content matching and ethnic identity tailoring

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kristina Romeike

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Unhealthy dietary and physical activity (PA patterns are highly prevalent in most Western countries, especially among lower-educated and ethnic minority groups. Therefore, interventions to promote healthy eating and physical activity that can reach large numbers of lower-educated people are needed. When developing interventions, the ethnic diversity of the lower-educated population may be taken into account to make intervention material more appealing to the target group. This article describes the development and evaluation of two computer-tailored nutrition and physical activity interventions for lower-educated Dutch, Turkish and Moroccan women. One version is tailored to sociocognitive variables (traditional tailoring, while the other is additionally tailored to ethnic identity (EI-tailoring. Method Using intervention mapping, two evidence- and theory-based interventions were developed. In the traditional tailoring intervention, messages are tailored to health behavior, awareness of own behavior, attitude and self-efficacy. The behavior change techniques used to address these factors are: descriptive and evaluative feedback, arguments, modeling, goal setting, planning, barrier identification and advice on how to deal with barriers, stimulating resistance to social pressure, mobilization of social support (nontailored, active learning (nontailored and iterative feedback. In the EI-tailoring intervention, the material is additionally tailored to ethnic identity (EI. This means that recipients who feel strongly attached to their ethnic background receive different intervention material than recipients with a weak attachment to their background. This includes, for instance, the use of more traditional colors, role models that match with their origin and advice messages that refer to their ethnicity of origin. Discussion Developing an intervention that matches the needs of this specific target population was challenging due to

GIS tailored questionnaires for assisting health care management in distributing resources

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Herselman, M

2010-09-01

Full Text Available A tailored questionnaire focuses on dynamic generation of items and questions according to the location where the questionnaire is used. The approach is connected to the management of resources and the support of decision making processes which...

LPWA using supersonic gas jet with tailored density profile

Science.gov (United States)

Kononenko, O.; Bohlen, S.; Dale, J.; D'Arcy, R.; Dinter, M.; Erbe, J. H.; Indorf, G.; di Lucchio, L.; Goldberg, L.; Gruse, J. N.; Karstensen, S.; Libov, V.; Ludwig, K.; Martinez de La Ossa, A.; Marutzky, F.; Niroula, A.; Osterhoff, J.; Quast, M.; Schaper, L.; Schwinkendorf, J.-P.; Streeter, M.; Tauscher, G.; Weichert, S.; Palmer, C.; Horbatiuk, Taras

2016-10-01

Laser driven plasma wakefield accelerators have been explored as a potential compact, reproducible source of relativistic electron bunches, utilising an electric field of many GV/m. Control over injection of electrons into the wakefield is of crucial importance in producing stable, mono-energetic electron bunches. Density tailoring of the target, to control the acceleration process, can also be used to improve the quality of the bunch. By using gas jets to provide tailored targets it is possible to provide good access for plasma diagnostics while also producing sharp density gradients for density down-ramp injection. OpenFOAM hydrodynamic simulations were used to investigate the possibility of producing tailored density targets in a supersonic gas jet. Particle-in-cell simulations of the resulting density profiles modelled the effect of the tailored density on the properties of the accelerated electron bunch. Here, we present the simulation results together with preliminary experimental measurements of electron and x-ray properties from LPWA experiments using gas jet targets and a 25 TW, 25 fs Ti:Sa laser system at DESY.

Employee Perceptions of Workplace Health Promotion Programs: Comparison of a Tailored, Semi-Tailored, and Standardized Approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Street, Tamara D; Lacey, Sarah J

2018-04-28

In the design of workplace health promotion programs (WHPPs), employee perceptions represent an integral variable which is predicted to translate into rate of user engagement (i.e., participation) and program loyalty. This study evaluated employee perceptions of three workplace health programs promoting nutritional consumption and physical activity. Programs included: (1) an individually tailored consultation with an exercise physiologist and dietitian; (2) a semi-tailored 12-week SMS health message program; and (3) a standardized group workshop delivered by an expert. Participating employees from a transport company completed program evaluation surveys rating the overall program, affect, and utility of: consultations ( n = 19); SMS program ( n = 234); and workshops ( n = 86). Overall, participants’ affect and utility evaluations were positive for all programs, with the greatest satisfaction being reported in the tailored individual consultation and standardized group workshop conditions. Furthermore, mode of delivery and the physical presence of an expert health practitioner was more influential than the degree to which the information was tailored to the individual. Thus, the synergy in ratings between individually tailored consultations and standardized group workshops indicates that low-cost delivery health programs may be as appealing to employees as tailored, and comparatively high-cost, program options.

Comparing tailored and untailored text messages for smoking cessation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Skov-Ettrup, L S; Ringgaard, L W; Dalum, P

2014-01-01

The aim was to compare the effectiveness of untailored text messages for smoking cessation to tailored text messages delivered at a higher frequency. From February 2007 to August 2009, 2030 users of an internet-based smoking cessation program with optional text message support aged 15-25 years were...... of text messages increases quit rates among young smokers....

'What do patients want?' Tailoring medicines information to meet patients' needs.

Science.gov (United States)

Young, Amber; Tordoff, June; Smith, Alesha

2017-11-01

Medicines information leaflets can equip patients to be in control of their own healthcare and support the safe and effective use of medicines. The design and content of leaflets influences patients' willingness to read them, and poor examples can cause patient confusion and anxiety. Researchers examined the literature over the past 8 years to determine the content and design of medicine information leaflets that patients prefer in order to read, understand, and use them effectively. It was found that existing leaflets do not meet patients' needs and appear ineffective. Leaflets lack the information patients seek and may contain non-essential material, affecting patients' perception of, and willingness to read them. Additionally, the acceptable leaflet length varies between patients. Application of good design principles improves readability, comprehension, and ability to locate information. Medicine information leaflets must meet patients' needs and be well designed. Tailoring information leaflets to patient characteristics and requirements would enhance effectiveness. Passive provision of pre-printed leaflets is outdated, unvalued and ineffective. Using automated computer systems for leaflet tailoring with the ability to further adapt patients' information might be the best way forward. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Tailoring NIST Security Controls for the Ground System: Selection and Implementation -- Recommendations for Information System Owners

Science.gov (United States)

Takamura, Eduardo; Mangum, Kevin

2016-01-01

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) invests millions of dollars in spacecraft and ground system development, and in mission operations in the pursuit of scientific knowledge of the universe. In recent years, NASA sent a probe to Mars to study the Red Planet's upper atmosphere, obtained high resolution images of Pluto, and it is currently preparing to find new exoplanets, rendezvous with an asteroid, and bring a sample of the asteroid back to Earth for analysis. The success of these missions is enabled by mission assurance. In turn, mission assurance is backed by information assurance. The information systems supporting NASA missions must be reliable as well as secure. NASA - like every other U.S. Federal Government agency - is required to manage the security of its information systems according to federal mandates, the most prominent being the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) of 2002 and the legislative updates that followed it. Like the management of enterprise information technology (IT), federal information security management takes a "one-size fits all" approach for protecting IT systems. While this approach works for most organizations, it does not effectively translate into security of highly specialized systems such as those supporting NASA missions. These systems include command and control (C&C) systems, spacecraft and instrument simulators, and other elements comprising the ground segment. They must be carefully configured, monitored and maintained, sometimes for several years past the missions' initially planned life expectancy, to ensure the ground system is protected and remains operational without any compromise of its confidentiality, integrity and availability. Enterprise policies, processes, procedures and products, if not effectively tailored to meet mission requirements, may not offer the needed security for protecting the information system, and they may even become disruptive to mission operations

Enabling Tailored Music Programs in Elementary Schools: An Australian Exemplar

Science.gov (United States)

McFerran, Katrina Skewes; Crooke, Alexander Hew Dale

2014-01-01

Participation in meaningful school music programs is the right of all children. Although music education is widely supported by policy, significant gaps exist in practice in most developed Western countries. These gaps mean the extrinsic and intrinsic benefits associated with participation in tailored programs are not equally available to all…

Planning Support Systems (PSS-Based Spatial Plan Alternatives and Environmental Assessment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hee-Sun Choi

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Spatial planning is at the core of national land and urban development. Many countries and cities seek sustainable development through various means such as coordinated environmental planning, environmental assessment, and internalization of environmental analysis and planning. A Planning Support System (PSS is a GIS (Geographic Information System-based, spatial decision-making support system that incorporates a variety of theories and pertinent models. This study adopted the “What if?” model to design an alternative spatial plan that includes generation of predictive scenarios and is relatively easy to use. In the cities studied, we identified a total of six scenarios based on the main drivers of development—namely, population and spatial policies. Subsequently, we assessed the alternatives for their environmental impact, preparing sensitivity maps for each major environmental issue in the target area (natural ecosystem, air and microclimate, natural disasters. One projected advantage of the “What if?” model is that its digital visualization of proposed plans may improve public awareness and involvement. Furthermore, the tool is expected to be highly useful in ensuring the objectivity of quantitative analyses. However, it is necessary to develop a PSS that is both standardized and tailored to the particular needs of each area. Finally, the development of an e-governance system will be beneficial in ensuring public access to the decision making process.

Supporting the Support System: How Assessment and Communication Can Help Patients and Their Support Systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Harkey, Jane; Young, Jared; Carter, Jolynne Jo; Demoratz, Michael

The benefits of having a support system, such as social relationships with close friends and family, have been well documented for patients with serious health issues. As scientific evidence has shown, individuals who have the lowest level of involvement in social relationships face a greater mortality risk. Support systems, however, are not infallible. Relationship stress can have a negative impact on people-patient and caregiver alike-behaviorally, psychosocially, and physiologically. The purpose of this article is to encourage case managers who take a patient-centered approach to also consider the existence and extent of the support system, as well as any stresses or tensions that are observable within the support system. Although the case manager is ethically obliged to advocate for the individual receiving case management services, that advocacy can be extended to the support system for the good of all. This discussion applies to numerous case management practices and work settings including (but not limited to) hospital-based case management, home health, geriatrics, catastrophic case management, mental health, palliative care, and end of life/hospice. As part of the assessment phase of the case management process, case managers determine the extent of the patient's support system or social support network such as family and close friends. Although their advocacy is primarily for the patient receiving case management services, case managers also become aware of the needs of the support system members as they face their loved one's serious illness, severe injury, geriatric care demands, or end of life. Case managers can use their communication skills, especially motivational interviewing, with patients and their support systems to identify stresses and issues that can impact the pursuit of health goals. In addition, case managers ensure that individuals and their support systems are kept informed such as about the health condition, stage of disease, plan of

The multi-dimensional talent support tool (mBET – a systemic approach towards individualized support of the gifted and talented in Austria

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Johanna Stahl

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Providing gifted students with personalized talent development programs is a challenge for teachers and educators alike. The multi-dimensional talent development tool (mBET guides teachers on their way to individualized gifted programs. Within a holistic and systemic concept of giftedness, the mBET brings together the perspectives of teachers, parents and the individual student in assessing talents as well as relevant personality characteristics and environment factors. By facilitating support-oriented round-table talks, the mBET helps teachers, parents and students to develop individually tailored talent development programs, taking into consideration both talents and other factors relevant for successful gifted education (i.e. non-cognitive personality characteristics and environmental factors.

Anthraquinone with Tailored Structure for Nonaqueous Metal-Organic Redox Flow Battery

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Wei; Xu, Wu; Cosimbescu, Lelia; Choi, Daiwon; Li, Liyu; Yang, Zhenguo

2012-06-08

A nonaqueous, hybrid metal-organic redox flow battery based on tailored anthraquinone structure is demonstrated to have an energy efficiency of {approx}82% and a specific discharge energy density similar to aqueous redox flow batteries, which is due to the significantly improved solubility of anthraquinone in supporting electrolytes.

Tailoring Earned Value Management. General Guidelines

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

2002-01-01

Partial Contents: General Principles, A Spectrum of Implementation, OMB Guidance, A Special Note about DOD, Risk Factors to Consider, How can EVMS be tailored, Tailor EVMS to Inherent Risk, Application Thresholds-DoD...

Neonates need tailored drug formulations.

Science.gov (United States)

Allegaert, Karel

2013-02-08

Drugs are very strong tools used to improve outcome in neonates. Despite this fact and in contrast to tailored perfusion equipment, incubators or ventilators for neonates, we still commonly use drug formulations initially developed for adults. We would like to make the point that drug formulations given to neonates need to be tailored for this age group. Besides the obvious need to search for active compounds that take the pathophysiology of the newborn into account, this includes the dosage and formulation. The dosage or concentration should facilitate the administration of low amounts and be flexible since clearance is lower in neonates with additional extensive between-individual variability. Formulations need to be tailored for dosage variability in the low ranges and also to the clinical characteristics of neonates. A specific focus of interest during neonatal drug development therefore is a need to quantify and limit excipient exposure based on the available knowledge of their safety or toxicity. Until such tailored vials and formulations become available, compounding practices for drug formulations in neonates should be evaluated to guarantee the correct dosing, product stability and safety.

Tailorable and Wearable Textile Devices for Solar Energy Harvesting and Simultaneous Storage.

Science.gov (United States)

Chai, Zhisheng; Zhang, Nannan; Sun, Peng; Huang, Yi; Zhao, Chuanxi; Fan, Hong Jin; Fan, Xing; Mai, Wenjie

2016-10-05

The pursuit of harmonic combination of technology and fashion intrinsically points to the development of smart garments. Herein, we present an all-solid tailorable energy textile possessing integrated function of simultaneous solar energy harvesting and storage, and we call it tailorable textile device. Our technique makes it possible to tailor the multifunctional textile into any designed shape without impairing its performance and produce stylish smart energy garments for wearable self-powering system with enhanced user experience and more room for fashion design. The "threads" (fiber electrodes) featuring tailorability and knittability can be large-scale fabricated and then woven into energy textiles. The fiber supercapacitor with merits of tailorability, ultrafast charging capability, and ultrahigh bending-resistance is used as the energy storage module, while an all-solid dye-sensitized solar cell textile is used as the solar energy harvesting module. Our textile sample can be fully charged to 1.2 V in 17 s by self-harvesting solar energy and fully discharged in 78 s at a discharge current density of 0.1 mA.

Qualitative and quantitative research into the development and feasibility of a video-tailored physical activity intervention

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mummery W Kerry

2011-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Continued low adherence to physical activity recommendations illustrates the need to refine intervention strategies and increase their effectiveness. The purpose of this study was to conduct formative research related to the development of a next generation of computer-tailored interventions that use online tailored video-messages to increase physical activity. Methods Five focus groups (n = 30, aimed at males and females, aged between 35 and 60 years, that do not meet the physical activity recommendation, were conducted to allow in-depth discussion of various elements related to the development of an online video-tailored intervention. In addition, a series of questions were delivered to a random sample (n = 1261 of Australians, using CATI survey technology, to gain more information and add a quantitative assessment of feasibility related to the development of the intervention. Focus group data was transcribed, and summarised using Nvivo software. Descriptive and frequency data of the survey was obtained using SPSS 18.0. Results Nearly all of the focus group participants supported the concept of a video-tailored intervention and 35.8% of survey participants indicated that they would prefer a video-based over a text-based intervention. Participants with a slow internet-connection displayed a lower preference for video-based advice (31.9%; however less than 20% of the survey sample indicated that downloading videos would be slow. The majority of focus group and survey participants did not support the idea of using mobile phones to receive this kind of intervention and indicated that video-tailored messages should be shorter than 5 minutes. Video-delivery of content is very rich in information, which increases the challenge to appropriately tailor content to participant characteristics; focus-group outcomes indicated a large diversity in participant preferences. 52.4% of survey participants indicated that the videos should be

Personalization and perceived personal relevance in computer-tailored persuasion in smoking cessation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dijkstra, Arie; Ballast, Karien

Objectives. In most computer-tailored interventions, the recipient's name is used to personalize the information. This is done to increase the process of persuasion but few empirical data exist that support this notion. yDesign. An experimental laboratory study was conducted to test the effects of

Robustness of an artificially tailored fisheye imaging system with a curvilinear image surface

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Gil Ju; Nam, Won Il; Song, Young Min

2017-11-01

Curved image sensors inspired by animal and insect eyes have provided a new development direction in next-generation digital cameras. It is known that natural fish eyes afford an extremely wide field of view (FOV) imaging due to the geometrical properties of the spherical lens and hemispherical retina. However, its inherent drawbacks, such as the low off-axis illumination and the fabrication difficulty of a 'dome-like' hemispherical imager, limit the development of bio-inspired wide FOV cameras. Here, a new type of fisheye imaging system is introduced that has simple lens configurations with a curvilinear image surface, while maintaining high off-axis illumination and a wide FOV. Moreover, through comparisons with commercial conventional fisheye designs, it is determined that the volume and required number of optical elements of the proposed design is practical while capturing the fundamental optical performances. Detailed design guidelines for tailoring the proposed optic system are also discussed.

Tailoring decision support to suit user needs: a diagnostic imaging example.

Science.gov (United States)

Griffith, Janessa; Borycki, Elizabeth M; Kushniruk, Andre W

2013-01-01

Unnecessary diagnostic imaging (DI) examinations raise concerns for patient safety and place stress on human and financial resources. To reduce unnecessary DI examinations, several Canadian pilot studies have investigated how decision support systems (DSS) could be utilized. Based on interview results from our previous research, in addition to a literature review, themes emerged that influenced the features and design of a DI DSS prototype. Features include having the referring professional indicate how the results of the examination will be utilized (i.e. for diagnosis or patient management), increasing communication between referring physicians/nurse practitioners and radiologists, and displaying previous DI examinations (or orders that are scheduled to take place) to avoid duplicate orders. Presenting a patient's cumulative radiation exposure, and having resources for information support to guide physicians through challenging clinical decisions are two other features included in the DSS prototype. By incorporating physician perspectives and current literature into the design, this DSS aims to promote the appropriate use of DI resources by supporting physicians and nurse practitioners in their DI ordering practices.

An Environment for Guideline-based Decision Support Systems for Outpatients Monitoring.

Science.gov (United States)

Zini, Elisa M; Lanzola, Giordano; Bossi, Paolo; Quaglini, Silvana

2017-08-11

We propose an architecture for monitoring outpatients that relies on mobile technologies for acquiring data. The goal is to better control the onset of possible side effects between the scheduled visits at the clinic. We analyze the architectural components required to ensure a high level of abstraction from data. Clinical practice guidelines were formalized with Alium, an authoring tool based on the PROforma language, using SNOMED-CT as a terminology standard. The Alium engine is accessible through a set of APIs that may be leveraged for implementing an application based on standard web technologies to be used by doctors at the clinic. Data sent by patients using mobile devices need to be complemented with those already available in the Electronic Health Record to generate personalized recommendations. Thus a middleware pursuing data abstraction is required. To comply with current standards, we adopted the HL7 Virtual Medical Record for Clinical Decision Support Logical Model, Release 2. The developed architecture for monitoring outpatients includes: (1) a guideline-based Decision Support System accessible through a web application that helps the doctors with prevention, diagnosis and treatment of therapy side effects; (2) an application for mobile devices, which allows patients to regularly send data to the clinic. In order to tailor the monitoring procedures to the specific patient, the Decision Support System also helps physicians with the configuration of the mobile application, suggesting the data to be collected and the associated collection frequency that may change over time, according to the individual patient's conditions. A proof of concept has been developed with a system for monitoring the side effects of chemo-radiotherapy in head and neck cancer patients. Our environment introduces two main innovation elements with respect to similar works available in the literature. First, in order to meet the specific patients' needs, in our work the Decision

Developing a decision support system to meet nurse managers' information needs for effective resource management.

Science.gov (United States)

Ruland, C M

2001-01-01

This article describes the development of a decision support system called CLASSICA, which assists nurse managers in financial management, resource allocation, activity planning, and quality control. CLASSICA integrates information about patient flow and activity, staffing, and the cost of nursing care at the nursing-unit level. The system provides assistance in planning activities, balancing the budget, and identifying barriers to unsatisfactory resource management. In addition, CLASSICA contains forecasting and simulation options to analyze the influence of factors that affect nursing costs. This article describes the system's development process steps to tailor it to the needs of nurse managers and their existing work practices. Nurse managers actively participated in defining their tasks and responsibilities; identified barriers and difficulties in managing these tasks; defined information needs, data input, and output and interface requirements; and identified expected benefits. Clear communication of project goals, strong user involvement, and purposeful benefit planning was used to achieve the goals for CLASSICA: (1) to provide essential information and decision support for effective financial management, resource allocation, activity planning, and staffing; (2) to improve nurse managers' competence in financial management and decision making; (3) to improve cost containment; and (4) to provide a helpful and easy to use tool for decision support.

Designing Integrated Approaches to Support People with Multimorbidity: Key Messages from Systematic Reviews, Health System Leaders and Citizens.

Science.gov (United States)

Wilson, Michael G; Lavis, John N; Gauvin, Francois-Pierre

2016-11-01

Living with multiple chronic conditions (multimorbidity) - and facing complex, uncoordinated and fragmented care - is part of the daily life of a growing number of Canadians. We undertook: a knowledge synthesis; a "gap analysis" of existing systematic reviews; an issue brief that synthesized the available evidence about the problem, three options for addressing it and implementation considerations; a stakeholder dialogue involving key health-system leaders; and a citizen panel. We identified several recommendations for actions that can be taken, including: developing evidence-based guidance that providers can use to help achieve goals set by patients; embracing approaches to supporting self-management; supporting greater communication and collaboration across healthcare providers as well as between healthcare providers and patients; and investing more efforts in health promotion and disease prevention. Our results point to the need for health system decision-makers to support bottom-up, person-centred approaches to developing models of care that are tailored for people with multimorbidity and support a research agenda to address the identified priorities. Copyright © 2016 Longwoods Publishing.

Anthraquinone with tailored structure for a nonaqueous metal-organic redox flow battery.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Wei; Xu, Wu; Cosimbescu, Lelia; Choi, Daiwon; Li, Liyu; Yang, Zhenguo

2012-07-07

A nonaqueous, hybrid metal-organic redox flow battery based on tailored anthraquinone structure is demonstrated to have an energy efficiency of ~82% and a specific discharge energy density similar to those of aqueous redox flow batteries, which is due to the significantly improved solubility of anthraquinone in supporting electrolytes.

Tailored motivational message generation: A model and practical framework for real-time physical activity coaching.

Science.gov (United States)

Op den Akker, Harm; Cabrita, Miriam; Op den Akker, Rieks; Jones, Valerie M; Hermens, Hermie J

2015-06-01

This paper presents a comprehensive and practical framework for automatic generation of real-time tailored messages in behavior change applications. Basic aspects of motivational messages are time, intention, content and presentation. Tailoring of messages to the individual user may involve all aspects of communication. A linear modular system is presented for generating such messages. It is explained how properties of user and context are taken into account in each of the modules of the system and how they affect the linguistic presentation of the generated messages. The model of motivational messages presented is based on an analysis of existing literature as well as the analysis of a corpus of motivational messages used in previous studies. The model extends existing 'ontology-based' approaches to message generation for real-time coaching systems found in the literature. Practical examples are given on how simple tailoring rules can be implemented throughout the various stages of the framework. Such examples can guide further research by clarifying what it means to use e.g. user targeting to tailor a message. As primary example we look at the issue of promoting daily physical activity. Future work is pointed out in applying the present model and framework, defining efficient ways of evaluating individual tailoring components, and improving effectiveness through the creation of accurate and complete user- and context models. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A Machine Learning Recommender System to Tailor Preference Assessments to Enhance Person-Centered Care Among Nursing Home Residents.

Science.gov (United States)

Gannod, Gerald C; Abbott, Katherine M; Van Haitsma, Kimberly; Martindale, Nathan; Heppner, Alexandra

2018-05-21

Nursing homes (NHs) using the Preferences for Everyday Living Inventory (PELI-NH) to assess important preferences and provide person-centered care find the number of items (72) to be a barrier to using the assessment. Using a sample of n = 255 NH resident responses to the PELI-NH, we used the 16 preference items from the MDS 3.0 Section F to develop a machine learning recommender system to identify additional PELI-NH items that may be important to specific residents. Much like the Netflix recommender system, our system is based on the concept of collaborative filtering whereby insights and predictions (e.g., filters) are created using the interests and preferences of many users. The algorithm identifies multiple sets of "you might also like" patterns called association rules, based upon responses to the 16 MDS preferences that recommends an additional set of preferences with a high likelihood of being important to a specific resident. In the evaluation of the combined apriori and logistic regression approach, we obtained a high recall performance (i.e., the ratio of correctly predicted preferences compared with all predicted preferences and nonpreferences) and high precision (i.e., the ratio of correctly predicted rules with respect to the rules predicted to be true) of 80.2% and 79.2%, respectively. The recommender system successfully provides guidance on how to best tailor the preference items asked of residents and can support preference capture in busy clinical environments, contributing to the feasibility of delivering person-centered care.

Change in quality management in diabetes care groups and outpatient clinics after feedback and tailored support.

Science.gov (United States)

Campmans-Kuijpers, Marjo J; Baan, Caroline A; Lemmens, Lidwien C; Rutten, Guy E

2015-02-01

To assess the change in level of diabetes quality management in primary care groups and outpatient clinics after feedback and tailored support. This before-and-after study with a 1-year follow-up surveyed quality managers on six domains of quality management. Questionnaires measured organization of care, multidisciplinary teamwork, patient centeredness, performance results, quality improvement policy, and management strategies (score range 0-100%). Based on the scores, responders received feedback and a benchmark and were granted access to a toolbox of quality improvement instruments. If requested, additional support in improving quality management was available, consisting of an elucidating phone call or a visit from an experienced consultant. After 1 year, the level of quality management was measured again. Of the initially 60 participating care groups, 51 completed the study. The total quality management score improved from 59.8% (95% CI 57.0-62.6%) to 65.1% (62.8-67.5%; P quality management score (P = 0.001). Of the 44 participating outpatient clinics, 28 completed the study. Their total score changed from 65.7% (CI 60.3-71.1%) to 67.3% (CI 62.9-71.7%; P = 0.30). Only the results in the domain multidisciplinary teamwork improved (P = 0.001). Measuring quality management and providing feedback and a benchmark improves the level of quality management in care groups but not in outpatient clinics. The questionnaires might also be a useful asset for other diabetes care groups, such as Accountable Care Organizations. © 2015 by the American Diabetes Association. Readers may use this article as long as the work is properly cited, the use is educational and not for profit, and the work is not altered.

Does tailoring really make a difference? : the development and evaluation of tailored interventions aimed at benzodiazepine cessation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wolde, Geeske Brecht ten

2008-01-01

Because of the problems associated with chronic benzodiazepine use, there is impetus to prevent and reduce chronic benzodiazepine use. The overall aim was to develop a 'tailor-made' intervention in order to reduce chronic use. Before developing tailored patient education, it is first of all

Patient support systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Braden, A.B.; McBride, T.R.; Styblo, D.J.; Taylor, S.K.; Richey, J.B.

1979-01-01

A patient support system for use in computerized tomography (CT) is described. The system is particularly useful for CT scanning of the brain and also of the abdominal area. The support system consists of two moveable tables which may be translated into position for X-ray scanning of the patient's body and which may be translated incrementally and automatically to obtain scans at adjacent locations. For use with brain scans, the second table is replaced by a detachable restraint assembly which is described in detail. The support system is so designed that only a small volume of low density material will intercept the X-ray beam. (UK)

Climate Services Information System Activities in Support of The Global Framework for Climate Services Implementation

Science.gov (United States)

Timofeyeva-Livezey, M. M.; Horsfall, F. M. C.; Pulwarty, R. S.; Klein-Tank, A.; Kolli, R. K.; Hechler, P.; Dilley, M.; Ceron, J. P.; Goodess, C.

2017-12-01

The WMO Commission on Climatology (CCl) supports the implementation of the Global Framework for Climate Services (GFCS) with a particular focus on the Climate Services Information System (CSIS), which is the core operational component of GFCS at the global, regional, and national level. CSIS is designed for producing, packaging and operationally delivering authoritative climate information data and products through appropriate operational systems, practices, data exchange, technical standards, authentication, communication, and product delivery. Its functions include climate analysis and monitoring, assessment and attribution, prediction (monthly, seasonal, decadal), and projection (centennial scale) as well as tailoring the associated products tUEAo suit user requirements. A central, enabling piece of implementation of CSIS is a Climate Services Toolkit (CST). In its development phase, CST exists as a prototype (www.wmo.int/cst) as a compilation of tools for generating tailored data and products for decision-making, with a special focus on national requirements in developing countries. WMO provides a server to house the CST prototype as well as support operations and maintenance. WMO members provide technical expertise and other in-kind support, including leadership of the CSIS development team. Several recent WMO events have helped with the deployment of CST within the eight countries that have been recognized by GFCS as illustrative for developing their climate services at national levels. Currently these countries are developing climate services projects focusing service development and delivery for selected economic sectors, such as for health, agriculture, energy, water resources, and hydrometeorological disaster risk reduction. These countries are working together with their respective WMO Regional Climate Centers (RCCs), which provide technical assistance with implementation of climate services projects at the country level and facilitate development of

Incredible Years Program Tailored to Parents of Preschoolers with Autism: Pilot Results

Science.gov (United States)

Dababnah, Sarah; Parish, Susan L.

2016-01-01

Objective: This article reports on the acceptability and results from an evaluation of an empirically supported practice, The Incredible Years, tailored to parents of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Methods: Two groups of parents (N = 17) participated in a mixed methods test with no comparison group of the 15-week intervention. Data…

Nanoparticles and their tailoring with laser light

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hubenthal, Frank

2009-01-01

Monodisperse noble metal nanoparticles are of tremendous interest for numerous applications, such as surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy, catalysis or biosensing. However, preparation of monodisperse metal nanoparticles is still a challenging task, because typical preparation methods yield nanoparticle ensembles with broad shape and/or size distributions. To overcome this drawback, tailoring of metal nanoparticles with laser light has been developed, which is based on the pronounced shape- and size-dependent optical properties of metal nanoparticles. I will demonstrate that nanoparticle tailoring with ns-pulsed laser light is a suitable method to prepare nanoparticle ensembles with a narrow shape and/or size distribution. While irradiation with ns-pulsed laser light during nanoparticle growth permits a precise shape tailoring, post-grown irradiation allows a size tailoring. For example, the initial broad Gaussian size distribution of silver nanoparticles on quartz substrates with a standard deviation of σ= 30% is significantly reduced to as little as σ= 10% after tailoring. This paper addresses teachers of undergraduate and advanced school level as well as students. It assumes some fundamental knowledge in solid-state physics, thermodynamics and resonance vibration.

A HARDWARE SUPPORTED OPERATING SYSTEM KERNEL FOR EMBEDDED HARD REAL-TIME APPLICATIONS

NARCIS (Netherlands)

COLNARIC, M; HALANG, WA; TOL, RM

1994-01-01

The concept of the kernel, i.e. the time critical part of a real-time operating system, and its dedicated co-processor, especially tailored for embedded applications, are presented. The co-processor acts as a system controller and operates in conjunction with one or more conventional processors in

Formability of stainless steel tailored blanks

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bagger, Claus; Gong, Hui; Olsen, Flemming Ove

2004-01-01

In a number of systematic tests, the formability of tailored blanks consisting of even and different combinations of AISI304 and AISI316 in thickness of 0.8 mm and 1.5 mm have been investigated. In order to analyse the formability of tailored blanks with different sheet thickness, a method based ...

A tailored, dialogue-based health communication application for patients with chronic low back pain: study protocol of a randomised controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Dirmaier, Jörg; Härter, Martin; Weymann, Nina

2013-06-14

Chronic low back pain is a common chronic condition whose treatment success can be improved by active involvement of patients. Patient involvement can be fostered by web-based applications combining health information with decision support or behaviour change support. These so-called Interactive Health Communication Applications (IHCAs) can reach great numbers of patients at low financial cost and provide information and support at the time, place and learning speed patients prefer. However, high attrition often seems to decrease the effects of web-based interventions. Tailoring content and tone of IHCAs to the individual patient ́s needs might improve usage and therefore effectiveness. This study aims to evaluate a tailored IHCA for people with chronic low back pain combining health information with decision support and behaviour change support. The tailored IHCA will be tested regarding effectiveness and usage against a standard website with identical content in a single-blinded randomized trial with a parallel design. The IHCA contains information on chronic low back pain and its treatment options including health behaviour change recommendations. In the intervention group the content is delivered in dialogue form, tailored to relevant patient characteristics (health literacy, coping style). In the control group there is no tailoring, a standard web-page is used for presenting the content. Participants are unaware of group assignment. Eligibility criteria are age ≥ 18 years , self- reported chronic low back pain, and Internet access. To detect the expected small effect (Cohen's d = 0.2), the sample aims to include 414 patients, with assessments at baseline, directly after the first on-page visit, and at 3-month follow-up using online self-report questionnaires. It is expected that the tailored IHCA has larger effects on knowledge and patient empowerment (primary outcomes) compared to a standard website. Secondary outcomes are website usage

Support system, excavation arrangement, and process of supporting an object

Science.gov (United States)

Arnold, Bill W.

2017-08-01

A support system, an excavation arrangement, and a process of supporting an object are disclosed. The support system includes a weight-bearing device and a camming mechanism positioned below the weight-bearing device. A downward force on the weight-bearing device at least partially secures the camming mechanism to opposing surfaces. The excavation arrangement includes a borehole, a support system positioned within and secured to the borehole, and an object positioned on and supported by the support system. The process includes positioning and securing the support system and positioning the object on the weight-bearing device.

A method for making a glass supported system, such glass supported system, and the use of a glass support therefor

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Unnikrishnan, S.; Jansen, Henricus V.; Berenschot, Johan W.; Fazal, I.; Louwerse, M.C.; Mogulkoc, B.; Sanders, Remco G.P.; de Boer, Meint J.; Elwenspoek, Michael Curt

2008-01-01

The invention relates to a method for making a glass supported micro or nano system, comprising the steps of: i) providing a glass support; ii) mounting at least one system on at least one glass support; and iii) bonding the system to the glass support, such that the system is circumferentially

Tailoring of motional states in double-well potentials by time-dependent processes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haerkoenen, Kari; Kaerki, Ollijuhani; Suominen, Kalle-Antti

2006-01-01

We show that the vibrational state tailoring method developed for molecular systems can be applied for cold atoms in optical lattices. The original method is based on a three-level model interacting with two strong laser pulses in a counterintuitive sequence [M. Rodriguez et al., Phys. Rev. A 62, 053413 (2000)]. Here we outline the conditions for achieving similar dynamics with single time-dependent potential surfaces. It is shown that guided switching between diabatic and adiabatic evolution has an essential role in this system. We also show that efficient and precise tailoring of motional states in optical lattices can be achieved, for instance, simply by superimposing two lattices and moving them with respect to each other

Support and utilization of the LSI-11 processor family at SLAC

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kieffer, J.; Logg, C.A.; Farwell, D.E.

1981-01-01

Microcomputer systems based on the DEC LSI-11 processor family have been in use at SLAC for five years. They are used for a wide variety of applications. The support of these systems is divided into three general areas: engineering, maintenance, and software. Engineering specifies the system to match user requirements. SLAC has been able to design one general purpose system which can be tailored to fit many specific requirements. Maintenance provides system and component diagnostic services and repair. Software support includes software consulting services, assistance in systems design, and the development and support of special purpose operating systems and programs. These support functions are handled as subtasks by three teams in the SLAC Electronics Instrumentation Group. Each of these teams utilizes several LSI-11 systems in the performance of its primary tasks. They work closely together to jointly provide overall support for the larger SLAC community

Molecular tailoring of interfaces for thin film on substrate systems

Science.gov (United States)

Grady, Martha Elizabeth

Thin film on substrate systems appear most prevalently within the microelectronics industry, which demands that devices operate in smaller and smaller packages with greater reliability. The reliability of these multilayer film systems is strongly influenced by the adhesion of each of the bimaterial interfaces. During use, microelectronic components undergo thermo-mechanical cycling, which induces interfacial delaminations leading to failure of the overall device. The ability to tailor interfacial properties at the molecular level provides a mechanism to improve thin film adhesion, reliability and performance. This dissertation presents the investigation of molecular level control of interface properties in three thin film-substrate systems: photodefinable polyimide films on passivated silicon substrates, self-assembled monolayers at the interface of Au films and dielectric substrates, and mechanochemically active materials on rigid substrates. For all three materials systems, the effect of interfacial modifications on adhesion is assessed using a laser-spallation technique. Laser-induced stress waves are chosen because they dynamically load the thin film interface in a precise, noncontacting manner at high strain rates and are suitable for both weak and strong interfaces. Photodefinable polyimide films are used as dielectrics in flip chip integrated circuit packages to reduce the stress between silicon passivation layers and mold compound. The influence of processing parameters on adhesion is examined for photodefinable polyimide films on silicon (Si) substrates with three different passivation layers: silicon nitride (SiNx), silicon oxynitride (SiOxNy), and the native silicon oxide (SiO2). Interfacial strength increases when films are processed with an exposure step as well as a longer cure cycle. Additionally, the interfacial fracture energy is assessed using a dynamic delamination protocol. The high toughness of this interface (ca. 100 J/m2) makes it difficult

Tailoring Small IT Projects in the Project Planning Phase

Science.gov (United States)

Mulhearn, Michael F.

2011-01-01

Project management (PM) and systems engineering (SE) are essential skills in information technology (IT). There is an abundance of information available detailing the comprehensive bodies of knowledge, standards, and best practices. Despite the volume of information, there is surprisingly little information about how to tailor PM and SE tasks for…

Virtual design and optimization studies for industrial silicon microphones applying tailored system-level modeling

Science.gov (United States)

Kuenzig, Thomas; Dehé, Alfons; Krumbein, Ulrich; Schrag, Gabriele

2018-05-01

Maxing out the technological limits in order to satisfy the customers’ demands and obtain the best performance of micro-devices and-systems is a challenge of today’s manufacturers. Dedicated system simulation is key to investigate the potential of device and system concepts in order to identify the best design w.r.t. the given requirements. We present a tailored, physics-based system-level modeling approach combining lumped with distributed models that provides detailed insight into the device and system operation at low computational expense. The resulting transparent, scalable (i.e. reusable) and modularly composed models explicitly contain the physical dependency on all relevant parameters, thus being well suited for dedicated investigation and optimization of MEMS devices and systems. This is demonstrated for an industrial capacitive silicon microphone. The performance of such microphones is determined by distributed effects like viscous damping and inhomogeneous capacitance variation across the membrane as well as by system-level phenomena like package-induced acoustic effects and the impact of the electronic circuitry for biasing and read-out. The here presented model covers all relevant figures of merit and, thus, enables to evaluate the optimization potential of silicon microphones towards high fidelity applications. This work was carried out at the Technical University of Munich, Chair for Physics of Electrotechnology. Thomas Kuenzig is now with Infineon Technologies AG, Neubiberg.

Computer-Tailored Intervention for Juvenile Offenders

Science.gov (United States)

LEVESQUE, DEBORAH A.; JOHNSON, JANET L.; WELCH, CAROL A.; PROCHASKA, JANICE M.; FERNANDEZ, ANNE C.

2012-01-01

Studies assessing the efficacy of juvenile justice interventions show small effects on recidivism and other outcomes. This paper describes the development of a prototype of a multimedia computer-tailored intervention (“Rise Above Your Situation”or RAYS) that relies on an evidence-based model of behavior change, the Transtheoretical Model, and expert system technology to deliver assessments, feedback, printed reports, and counselor reports with intervention ideas. In a feasibility test involving 60 system-involved youths and their counselors, evaluations of the program were favorable: 91.7% of youths agreed that the program could help them make positive changes, and 86.7% agreed that the program could give their counselor helpful information about them. PMID:23264754

LGBTQ Youth and Young Adult Perspectives on a Culturally Tailored Group Smoking Cessation Program.

Science.gov (United States)

Baskerville, Neill Bruce; Shuh, Alanna; Wong-Francq, Katy; Dash, Darly; Abramowicz, Aneta

2017-08-01

The prevalence of smoking among LGBTQ youth and young adults (YYAs) is much higher than that of non-LGBTQ young people. The current study explored LGBTQ YYA perceptions of a culturally tailored group smoking cessation counselling program, along with how the intervention could be improved. We conducted focus groups (n = 24) with 204 LGBTQ YYAs in Toronto and Ottawa, Canada. Open-ended questions focused on their feelings, likes and dislikes, concerns and additional ideas for a culturally tailored group cessation counselling intervention. Focus group transcripts were coded thematically and analyzed. Overall, YYAs were ambivalent towards the concept of a culturally tailored, group cessation counselling program. Although several participants were attracted to the LGBTQ friendly and social benefits of such a program (eg, good support system), many also had concerns. Particularly, the possibility that other group members might trigger them to smoke was a frequently stated issue. Focus group members also noted lack of motivation to attend the group, and that the group program may be inaccessible depending on where and when the program was offered. Several suggestions were made as to how to ameliorate the expressed issues related to inaccessibility or lack of attractiveness. This study is among the first to gain the perspectives of LGBTQ YYAs on culturally tailored group cessation strategies in Canada. We identified components of group cessation programs that are both favored and not favored among LGBTQ YYAs, as well as suggestions as to how to make group cessation programs more appealing. This study is particularly relevant as smoking cessation programs are one of the most commonly offered and published cessation interventions for the LGBTQ community, yet little is understood in terms of preferences of LGBTQ YYA smokers. Given the disparity in the prevalence of smoking among LGBTQ young people compared to their non-LGBTQ peers, research on effective intervention strategies

What's in a Surname? Physique, Aptitude, and Sports Type Comparisons between Tailors and Smiths.

Science.gov (United States)

Voracek, Martin; Rieder, Stephan; Stieger, Stefan; Swami, Viren

2015-01-01

Combined heredity of surnames and physique, coupled with past marriage patterns and trade-specific physical aptitude and selection factors, may have led to differential assortment of bodily characteristics among present-day men with specific trade-reflecting surnames (Tailor vs. Smith). Two studies reported here were partially consistent with this genetic-social hypothesis, first proposed by Bäumler (1980). Study 1 (N = 224) indicated significantly higher self-rated physical aptitude for prototypically strength-related activities (professions, sports, hobbies) in a random sample of Smiths. The counterpart effect (higher aptitude for dexterity-related activities among Tailors) was directionally correct, but not significant, and Tailor-Smith differences in basic physique variables were nil. Study 2 examined two large total-population-of-interest datasets (Austria/Germany combined, and UK: N = 7001 and 20,532) of men's national high-score lists for track-and-field events requiring different physiques. In both datasets, proportions of Smiths significantly increased from light-stature over medium-stature to heavy-stature sports categories. The predicted counterpart effect (decreasing prevalences of Tailors along these categories) was not supported. Related prior findings, the viability of possible alternative interpretations of the evidence (differential positive selection for trades and occupations, differential endogamy and assortative mating patterns, implicit egotism effects), and directions for further inquiry are discussed in conclusion.

Tailoring PKI for the battlespace

Science.gov (United States)

Covey, Carlin R.

2003-07-01

A Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) can provide useful communication protections for friendly forces in the battlespace. The PKI would be used in conjunction with communication facilities that are accorded physical and Type-1 cryptographic protections. The latter protections would safeguard the confidentiality and (optionally) the integrity of communications between enclaves of users, whereas the PKI protections would furnish identification, authentication, authorization and privacy services for individual users. However, Commercial-Off-the-Shelf (COTS) and most Government-Off-the-Shelf (GOTS) PKI solutions are not ideally tailored for the battlespace environment. Most PKI solutions assume a relatively static, high-bandwidth communication network, whereas communication links in the battlespace will be dynamically reconfigured and bandwidth-limited. Most enterprise-wide PKI systems assume that users will enroll and disenroll at an orderly pace, whereas the battlespace PKI "enterprise" will grow and shrink abruptly as units are deployed or withdrawn from the battlespace. COTS and GOTS PKIs are seldom required to incorporate temporary "enterprise mergers", whereas the battlespace "enterprise" will need to incorporate temporary coalitions of forces drawn from various nations. This paper addresses both well-known and novel techniques for tailoring PKI for the battlespace environment. These techniques include the design of the security architecture, the selection of appropriate options within PKI standards, and some new PKI protocols that offer significant advantages in the battlespace.

A general overview of support materials for enzyme immobilization: Characteristics, properties, practical utility

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Zdarta, Jakub; Meyer, Anne S.; Jesionowski, Teofil

2018-01-01

on the properties of the produced catalytic system. A large variety of inorganic and organic as well as hybrid and composite materials may be used as stable and efficient supports for biocatalysts. This review provides a general overview of the characteristics and properties of the materials applied for enzyme...... immobilization. For the purposes of this literature study, support materials are divided into two main groups, called Classic and New materials. The review will be useful in selection of appropriate support materials with tailored properties for the production of highly effective biocatalytic systems for use...

Broadband energy harvesting using acoustic black hole structural tailoring

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhao, Liuxian; Semperlotti, Fabio; Conlon, Stephen C

2014-01-01

This paper explores the concept of an acoustic black hole (ABH) as a main design framework for performing dynamic structural tailoring of mechanical systems for vibration energy harvesting applications. The ABH is an integral feature embedded in the host structure that allows for a smooth reduction of the phase velocity, theoretically approaching zero, while minimizing the reflected energy. This mechanism results in structural areas with high energy density that can be effectively exploited to develop enhanced vibration-based energy harvesting. Fully coupled electro-mechanical models of an ABH tapered structure with surface mounted piezo-transducers are developed to numerically simulate the response of the system to both steady state and transient excitations. The design performances are numerically evaluated using structural intensity data as well as the instantaneous voltage/power and energy output produced by the piezo-transducer network. Results show that the dynamically tailored structural design enables a drastic increase in the harvested energy as compared to traditional structures, both under steady state and transient excitation conditions. (papers)

Are we there yet? An examination of online tailored health communication.

Science.gov (United States)

Suggs, L Suzanne; McIntyre, Chris

2009-04-01

Increasingly, the Internet is playing an important role in consumer health and patient-provider communication. Seventy-three percent of American adults are now online, and 79% have searched for health information on the Internet. This study provides a baseline understanding of the extent to which health consumers are able to find tailored communication online. It describes the current behavioral focus, the channels being used to deliver the tailored content, and the level of tailoring in online-tailored communication. A content analysis of 497 health Web sites found few examples of personalized, targeted, or tailored health sites freely available online. Tailored content was provided in 13 Web sites, although 15 collected individual data. More health risk assessment (HRA) sites included tailored feedback than other topics. The patterns that emerged from the analysis demonstrate that online health users can access a number of Web sites with communication tailored to their needs.

Tailoring the properties of cholecyst-derived extracellular matrix using carbodiimide cross-linking.

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Burugapalli, Krishna

2009-01-01

Modulation of properties of extracellular matrix (ECM) based scaffolds is key for their application in the clinical setting. In the present study, cross-linking was used as a tool for tailoring the properties of cholecyst-derived extracellular matrix (CEM). CEM was cross-linked with varying cross-linking concentrations of N,N-(3-dimethyl aminopropyl)-N\\'-ethyl carbodiimide (EDC) in the presence of N-hydroxysuccinimide (NHS). Shrink temperature measurements and ATR-FT-IR spectra were used to determine the degree of cross-linking. The effect of cross-linking on degradation was tested using the collagenase assay. Uniaxial tensile properties and the ability to support fibroblasts were also evaluated as a function of cross-linking. Shrink temperature increased from 59 degrees C for non-cross-linked CEM to 78 degrees C for the highest EDC cross-linking concentration, while IR peak area ratios for the free -NH(2) group at 3290 cm(-1) to that of the amide I band at 1635 cm(-1) decreased with increasing EDC cross-linking concentration. Collagenase assay demonstrated that degradation rates for CEM can be tailored. EDC concentrations 0 to 0.0033 mmol\\/mg CEM were the cross-linking concentration range in which CEM showed varied susceptibility to collagenase degradation. Furthermore, cross-linking concentrations up to 0.1 mmol EDC\\/mg CEM did not have statistically significant effect on the uniaxial tensile strength, as well as morphology, viability and proliferation of fibroblasts on CEM. In conclusion, the degradation rates of CEM can be tailored using EDC-cross-linking, while maintaining the mechanical properties and the ability of CEM to support cells.

Tailoring CSR Strategy to Company Size?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alexandra ZBUCHEA

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR is one of the most debated topics in the academic and professional business literature, being analyzed in a myriad of perspectives, from philosophy, to marketing, management practice, managerial strategies or financial impact. The very term of CSR implies that involving with society in a structural way that is part of a business DNA is or should be understood as a characteristic of big size companies (e.g. ‘corporations’. Academic literature and financial reports show a direct relationship between a company size and its CSR budget, therefore some conclusions have been taken that CSR is effective mostly in cases of big budgets and, consequently, of big companies. Academic research also tends to favor large corporations. Most of the literature on CSR is dedicated to large companies. Nevertheless, in the past decade, increasingly more studies have investigated the social responsibility assumed by other types of companies (such as SMEs, by public institutions or by nonprofit organizations. Our present empirical analysis based on structured academic literature review (comprehensive selection of relevant international papers and content analysis demonstrates that CSR should go beyond the classical understanding of the ‘corporation’ concept and that it should be tailored to SMEs as well. Innovation and top management support are the drivers of effective CSR adoption by SMEs, for positive results meeting specific business model requirements, as well as for society. Going beyond social responsibility as a philosophical duty, correctly tailored CSR strategies can be efficient for small and medium enterprises in meeting strategic business objectives.

Testing a Dutch web-based tailored lifestyle programme among adults: a study protocol

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

van Osch Liesbeth ADM

2011-02-01

, potential subgroup differences pertaining to gender, age and socioeconomic status regarding the behaviour effects and programme evaluation will be assessed. Discussion Research regarding multiple behaviour change is in its infancy. We study how to offer multiple behaviour change interventions optimally. Using these results could strengthen the effectiveness of web-based computer-tailoring lifestyle programmes. This study will yield new results about the need for differential lifestyle approaches using Internet-based expert systems and potential differences in subgroups concerning the effectiveness and appreciation. Trial registration Dutch Trial Register NTR2168.

Tailored Trustworthy Spaces: Solutions for the Smart Grid

Data.gov (United States)

Networking and Information Technology Research and Development, Executive Office of the President — The NITRD workshop on Tailored Trustworthy Spaces: Solutions for the Smart Grid was conceived by the Federal government to probe deeper into how Tailored Trustworthy...

Decision support systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jørgensen, L.N.; Noe, E.; Langvad, A.M.

2007-01-01

system Crop Protection Online is widely used by advisors and as a learning tool for students. Although the system has been validated in many field trials over the years and has shown reliable results, the number of end-users among farmers has been relatively low during the last 10 years (approximately...... 1000 farmers). A sociological investigation of farmers' decision-making styles in the area of crop protection has shown that arable farmers can be divided into three major groups: (a) system-orientated farmers, (b) experience-based farmers and (c) advisory-orientated farmers. The information required...... by these three groups to make their decisions varies and therefore different ways of using decision support systems need to be provided. Decision support systems need to be developed in close dialogue and collaboration with user groups....

The climate4impact platform: Providing, tailoring and facilitating climate model data access

Science.gov (United States)

Pagé, Christian; Pagani, Andrea; Plieger, Maarten; Som de Cerff, Wim; Mihajlovski, Andrej; de Vreede, Ernst; Spinuso, Alessandro; Hutjes, Ronald; de Jong, Fokke; Bärring, Lars; Vega, Manuel; Cofiño, Antonio; d'Anca, Alessandro; Fiore, Sandro; Kolax, Michael

2017-04-01

One of the main objectives of climate4impact is to provide standardized web services and tools that are reusable in other portals. These services include web processing services, web coverage services and web mapping services (WPS, WCS and WMS). Tailored portals can be targeted to specific communities and/or countries/regions while making use of those services. Easier access to climate data is very important for the climate change impact communities. To fulfill this objective, the climate4impact (http://climate4impact.eu/) web portal and services has been developed, targeting climate change impact modellers, impact and adaptation consultants, as well as other experts using climate change data. It provides to users harmonized access to climate model data through tailored services. It features static and dynamic documentation, Use Cases and best practice examples, an advanced search interface, an integrated authentication and authorization system with the Earth System Grid Federation (ESGF), a visualization interface with ADAGUC web mapping tools. In the latest version, statistical downscaling services, provided by the Santander Meteorology Group Downscaling Portal, were integrated. An innovative interface to integrate statistical downscaling services will be released in the upcoming version. The latter will be a big step in bridging the gap between climate scientists and the climate change impact communities. The climate4impact portal builds on the infrastructure of an international distributed database that has been set to disseminate the results from the global climate model results of the Coupled Model Intercomparison project Phase 5 (CMIP5). This database, the ESGF, is an international collaboration that develops, deploys and maintains software infrastructure for the management, dissemination, and analysis of climate model data. The European FP7 project IS-ENES, Infrastructure for the European Network for Earth System modelling, supports the European

RELATIONSHIP MARKETING RESEARCH TAILORED TO SUPPORT SALES MANAGEMENT. CASE STUDY: AN INTERNATIONAL EXPRESS LOGISTICS COMPANY IN ROMANIA

OpenAIRE

Pop Nicolae Alexandru; Mihoc Florin; Fotea Ioan Stefan

2010-01-01

Within current economy context, complexities and particularities most companies are constantly seeking to maximize effectiveness and efficiency of their business. As sales force represents for most organizations their “spearheds”and direct contact with the market, its management can be a source for customer satisfaction and overall efficiency. Relationship marketing research with all its particularities and dimensions, if tailored appropriately can explicitly pinpoint major sources of custome...

Tailored nutrition education: is it really effective?

Science.gov (United States)

Eyles, Helen; Ni Mhurchu, Cliona

2012-03-01

There has been a growing interest in tailored nutrition education over the previous decade, with a number of literature reviews suggesting this intervention strategy holds considerable potential. Nevertheless, the majority of intervention trials undertaken to date have employed subjective self-report outcome measures (such as dietary recalls). The aim of the present review is to further consider the likely true effect of tailored nutrition education by assessing the findings of tailored nutrition education intervention trials where objective outcome measures (such as sales data) have been employed. Four trials of tailored nutrition education employing objective outcome measures were identified: one was undertaken in eight low-cost supermarkets in New Zealand (2010; n 1104); one was an online intervention trial in Australia (2006; n 497); and two were undertaken in US supermarkets (1997 and 2001; n 105 and 296, respectively). Findings from the high-quality New Zealand trial were negative. Findings from the US trials were also generally negative, although reporting was poor making it difficult to assess quality. Findings from the high-quality online trial were positive, although have limited generalisability for public health. Trials employing objective outcome measures strongly suggest tailored nutrition education is not effective as a stand-alone strategy. However, further large, high-quality trials employing objective outcome measures are needed to determine the true effectiveness of this popular nutrition intervention strategy. Regardless, education plays an important role in generating social understanding and acceptance of broader interventions to improve nutrition.

What's in a Surname? Physique, Aptitude, and Sports Type Comparisons between Tailors and Smiths.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martin Voracek

Full Text Available Combined heredity of surnames and physique, coupled with past marriage patterns and trade-specific physical aptitude and selection factors, may have led to differential assortment of bodily characteristics among present-day men with specific trade-reflecting surnames (Tailor vs. Smith. Two studies reported here were partially consistent with this genetic-social hypothesis, first proposed by Bäumler (1980. Study 1 (N = 224 indicated significantly higher self-rated physical aptitude for prototypically strength-related activities (professions, sports, hobbies in a random sample of Smiths. The counterpart effect (higher aptitude for dexterity-related activities among Tailors was directionally correct, but not significant, and Tailor-Smith differences in basic physique variables were nil. Study 2 examined two large total-population-of-interest datasets (Austria/Germany combined, and UK: N = 7001 and 20,532 of men's national high-score lists for track-and-field events requiring different physiques. In both datasets, proportions of Smiths significantly increased from light-stature over medium-stature to heavy-stature sports categories. The predicted counterpart effect (decreasing prevalences of Tailors along these categories was not supported. Related prior findings, the viability of possible alternative interpretations of the evidence (differential positive selection for trades and occupations, differential endogamy and assortative mating patterns, implicit egotism effects, and directions for further inquiry are discussed in conclusion.

Tailoring self-assembled monolayers at the electrochemical interface

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Administrator

(SAMs) for functionalisation with different receptors, catalytic materials, biomolecules, enzymes, anti- gen-antibody, etc for various applications. ... and tailoring of SAMs by incorporation of suitable recognition elements. ... compatible with most organic functional groups and ...... the interfacial architecture can be tailored using.

Lay Health Influencers: How They Tailor Brief Tobacco Cessation Interventions

Science.gov (United States)

Yuan, Nicole P.; Castaneda, Heide; Nichter, Mark; Nichter, Mimi; Wind, Steven; Carruth, Lauren; Muramoto, Myra

2012-01-01

Interventions tailored to individual smoker characteristics have increasingly received attention in the tobacco control literature. The majority of tailored interventions are generated by computers and administered with printed materials or web-based programs. The purpose of this study was to examine the tailoring activities of community lay…

48 CFR 3046.791-2 - Tailoring warranty terms and conditions (USCG).

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... appropriately tailor the warranty on a case-by-case basis, including remedies, exclusions, limitations and... warranty certain defects for specified supplies (exclusions) and may limit the contractor's liability under... had not designed the system). (d) Contracting officers shall not include in a warranty clause any...

[Habitability and life support systems].

Science.gov (United States)

Nefedov, Iu G; Adamovich, B A

1988-01-01

This paper discusses various aspects of space vehicle habitability and life support systems. It describes variations in the chemical and microbial composition of an enclosed atmosphere during prolonged real and simulated flights. The paper gives a detailed description of life support systems and environmental investigations onboard the Mir station. It also outlines the development of space vehicle habitability and life support systems as related to future flights.

The Economy of Persistence: Mario the Tailor

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Prudence Black

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Mario Conte has had a tailor shop in King Street, Newtown since the mid 1960s. Taking an interview with Mario as its point of departure, this article describes the persistence of a skilled worker whose practices and techniques remain the same in a world that has long changed. While inattentive to what rules might be used to decorate a shop window, Mario continues to make and sew in the way that he learnt in post-war Italy. Mario’s persistence could be described as all the skills and other elements that need to be in place to keep him working, in particular the tradition of tailoring techniques he has remained true to over the last fifty years. The hand stitching of his tailoring is like a metronome of that persistence.

Tailoring group velocity by topology optimization

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Stainko, Roman; Sigmund, Ole

2007-01-01

The paper describes a systematic method for the tailoring of dispersion properties of slab-based photonic crystal waveguides. The method is based on the topology optimization method which consists in repeated finite element frequency domain analyses. The goal of the optimization process is to come...... up with slow light, zero group velocity dispersion photonic waveguides or photonic waveguides with tailored dispersion properties for dispersion compensation purposes. An example concerning the design of a wide bandwidth, constant low group velocity waveguide demonstrate the e±ciency of the method....

14 CFR 417.307 - Support systems.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 4 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Support systems. 417.307 Section 417.307... TRANSPORTATION LICENSING LAUNCH SAFETY Flight Safety System § 417.307 Support systems. (a) General. (1) A flight safety system must include the systems required by this section to support the functions of the flight...

Psychometric aspects of pupil monitoring systems

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Glas, Cornelis A.W.; Geerlings, Hanneke

2009-01-01

Pupil monitoring systems support the teacher in tailoring teaching to the individual level of a student and in comparing the progress and results of teaching with national standards. The systems are based on the availability of an item bank calibrated using item response theory. The assessment of

Computerized procedures system

Science.gov (United States)

Lipner, Melvin H.; Mundy, Roger A.; Franusich, Michael D.

2010-10-12

An online data driven computerized procedures system that guides an operator through a complex process facility's operating procedures. The system monitors plant data, processes the data and then, based upon this processing, presents the status of the current procedure step and/or substep to the operator. The system supports multiple users and a single procedure definition supports several interface formats that can be tailored to the individual user. Layered security controls access privileges and revisions are version controlled. The procedures run on a server that is platform independent of the user workstations that the server interfaces with and the user interface supports diverse procedural views.

What’s in a Surname? Physique, Aptitude, and Sports Type Comparisons between Tailors and Smiths

Science.gov (United States)

Voracek, Martin; Rieder, Stephan; Stieger, Stefan; Swami, Viren

2015-01-01

Combined heredity of surnames and physique, coupled with past marriage patterns and trade-specific physical aptitude and selection factors, may have led to differential assortment of bodily characteristics among present-day men with specific trade-reflecting surnames (Tailor vs. Smith). Two studies reported here were partially consistent with this genetic-social hypothesis, first proposed by Bäumler (1980). Study 1 (N = 224) indicated significantly higher self-rated physical aptitude for prototypically strength-related activities (professions, sports, hobbies) in a random sample of Smiths. The counterpart effect (higher aptitude for dexterity-related activities among Tailors) was directionally correct, but not significant, and Tailor-Smith differences in basic physique variables were nil. Study 2 examined two large total-population-of-interest datasets (Austria/Germany combined, and UK: N = 7001 and 20532) of men’s national high-score lists for track-and-field events requiring different physiques. In both datasets, proportions of Smiths significantly increased from light-stature over medium-stature to heavy-stature sports categories. The predicted counterpart effect (decreasing prevalences of Tailors along these categories) was not supported. Related prior findings, the viability of possible alternative interpretations of the evidence (differential positive selection for trades and occupations, differential endogamy and assortative mating patterns, implicit egotism effects), and directions for further inquiry are discussed in conclusion. PMID:26161803

Spill operation system decision support system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Clark, R.

1992-01-01

The MSRC Spill Operation System (SOS) is a tool for the support of decision-making at the time of a catastrophic oil spill. SOS provides MSRC decision-makers with access to information about the source of the spill, the spill environment, and the availability of spill response resources. This system is designed to meet the information needs of a Response Supervisor, an Environmental Advisor, Logistics/Maintenance Supervisor, Operations Supervisor, and the MSRC Regional General Manager. The SOS project Objectives are: (1) integrate currently available data, systems, and technologies; (2) develop an application that effectively supports mobilized operations and can be adapted to support normal operations; (3) ensure that the development of computer applications is driven by user needs and not by technology; and (4) coordinate with government and other industry organizations to avoid duplication of effort. Design Objectives for SOS are: (1) centralize management information storage while decentralizing decision making capabilities; (2) boost User confidence by providing a system that is easy to learn, easy to use, and is open-quotes Sailor Proofclose quotes; and (3) use visualization technology in providing spill related information. This approach includes the use of Geographic Information System (GIS) technology for maps and geographically associated resource; and support MSRC's concept of operation which includes - a swift notification of response personnel; fast mobilization of response resources; and accurate tracking of resources during a spill. MSRC is organized into five responsibility regions

Tailored Random Graph Ensembles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roberts, E S; Annibale, A; Coolen, A C C

2013-01-01

Tailored graph ensembles are a developing bridge between biological networks and statistical mechanics. The aim is to use this concept to generate a suite of rigorous tools that can be used to quantify and compare the topology of cellular signalling networks, such as protein-protein interaction networks and gene regulation networks. We calculate exact and explicit formulae for the leading orders in the system size of the Shannon entropies of random graph ensembles constrained with degree distribution and degree-degree correlation. We also construct an ergodic detailed balance Markov chain with non-trivial acceptance probabilities which converges to a strictly uniform measure and is based on edge swaps that conserve all degrees. The acceptance probabilities can be generalized to define Markov chains that target any alternative desired measure on the space of directed or undirected graphs, in order to generate graphs with more sophisticated topological features.

Sasang constitutional medicine as a holistic tailored medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Jong Yeol; Pham, Duong Duc

2009-09-01

Sasang constitutional medicine (SCM) is a unique traditional Korean therapeutic alternative form of medicine. Based on the Yin and Yang theory and on Confucianism, humans are classified into four constitutions. These differ in terms of (i) sensitivity to certain groups of herbs and medicines, (ii) equilibrium among internal organic functions, (iii) physical features and (iv) psychological characteristics. We propose that two main axes in the physiopathology of SCM (food intake/waste discharge and consuming/storing Qi and body fluids) are equivalent to the process of internal-external exchange and catabolism/anabolism in modern physiology, respectively. We then used this hypothesis to discuss the physiological and pathological principles of SCM. Constitution-based medicine is based on the theory that some medicinal herbs and remedies are only appropriate for certain constitutions and can cause adverse effects in others. The constitutional approach of SCM share the same vision as tailored medicine; an individualized therapy that can minimize the risk of adverse reaction while increasing the efficacy and an individualized self-regulation that can help prevent specific susceptible chronic disease and live healthily. There is still a long way to this goal for both SCM and tailored medicine, but we may benefit from systems approaches such as systems biology. We suggest that constitutional perspective of SCM and our hypothesis of two main processes may provide a novel insight for further studies.

Sasang Constitutional Medicine as a Holistic Tailored Medicine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jong Yeol Kim

2009-01-01

Full Text Available Sasang constitutional medicine (SCM is a unique traditional Korean therapeutic alternative form of medicine. Based on the Yin and Yang theory and on Confucianism, humans are classified into four constitutions. These differ in terms of (i sensitivity to certain groups of herbs and medicines, (ii equilibrium among internal organic functions, (iii physical features and (iv psychological characteristics. We propose that two main axes in the physiopathology of SCM (food intake/waste discharge and consuming/storing Qi and body fluids are equivalent to the process of internal–external exchange and catabolism/anabolism in modern physiology, respectively. We then used this hypothesis to discuss the physiological and pathological principles of SCM. Constitution-based medicine is based on the theory that some medicinal herbs and remedies are only appropriate for certain constitutions and can cause adverse effects in others. The constitutional approach of SCM share the same vision as tailored medicine; an individualized therapy that can minimize the risk of adverse reaction while increasing the efficacy and an individualized self-regulation that can help prevent specific susceptible chronic disease and live healthily. There is still a long way to this goal for both SCM and tailored medicine, but we may benefit from systems approaches such as systems biology. We suggest that constitutional perspective of SCM and our hypothesis of two main processes may provide a novel insight for further studies.

Feasibility and Acceptability of a Colocated Homeless-Tailored Primary Care Clinic and Emergency Department.

Science.gov (United States)

Gabrielian, Sonya; Chen, Jennifer C; Minhaj, Beena P; Manchanda, Rishi; Altman, Lisa; Koosis, Ella; Gelberg, Lillian

2017-10-01

Homeless adults have low primary care engagement and high emergency department (ED) utilization. Homeless-tailored, patient-centered medical homes (PCMH) decrease this population's acute care use. We studied the feasibility (focused on patient recruitment) and acceptability (conceptualized as clinicians' attitudes/beliefs) of a pilot initiative to colocate a homeless-tailored PCMH with an ED. After ED triage, low-acuity patients appropriate for outpatient care were screened for homelessness; homeless patients chose between a colocated PCMH or ED visit. To study feasibility, we captured (from May to September 2012) the number of patients screened for homelessness, positive screens, unique patients seen, and primary care visits. We focused on acceptability to ED clinicians (physicians, nurses, social workers); we sent a 32-item survey to ED clinicians (n = 57) who worked during clinic hours. Questions derived from an instrument measuring clinician attitudes toward homeless persons; acceptability of homelessness screening and the clinic itself were also explored. Over the 5 months of interest, 281 patients were screened; 172 (61.2%) screened positive for homelessness; 112 (65.1%) of these positive screens were seen over 215 visits. Acceptability data were obtained from 56% (n = 32) of surveyed clinicians. Attitudes toward homeless patients were similar to prior studies of primary care physicians. Most (54.6%) clinicians agreed with the homelessness screening procedures. Nearly all (90.3%) clinicians supported expansion of the homeless-tailored clinic; a minority (42.0%) agreed that ED colocation worked well. Our data suggest the feasibility of recruiting patients to a homeless-tailored primary care clinic colocated with the ED; however, the clinic's acceptability was mixed. Future quality improvement work should focus on tailoring the clinic to increase its acceptability among ED clinicians, while assessing its impact on health, housing, and costs.

NASA Advanced Exploration Systems: Advancements in Life Support Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Shull, Sarah A.; Schneider, Walter F.

2016-01-01

The NASA Advanced Exploration Systems (AES) Life Support Systems (LSS) project strives to develop reliable, energy-efficient, and low-mass spacecraft systems to provide environmental control and life support systems (ECLSS) critical to enabling long duration human missions beyond low Earth orbit (LEO). Highly reliable, closed-loop life support systems are among the capabilities required for the longer duration human space exploration missions assessed by NASA’s Habitability Architecture Team.

A Novel and Intelligent Home Monitoring System for Care Support of Elders with Cognitive Impairment.

Science.gov (United States)

Lazarou, Ioulietta; Karakostas, Anastasios; Stavropoulos, Thanos G; Tsompanidis, Theodoros; Meditskos, Georgios; Kompatsiaris, Ioannis; Tsolaki, Magda

2016-10-18

Assistive technology, in the form of a smart home environment, is employed to support people with dementia. To propose a system for continuous and objective remote monitoring of problematic daily living activity areas and design personalized interventions based on system feedback and clinical observations for improving cognitive function and health-related quality of life. The assistive technology of the proposed system, including wearable, sleep, object motion, presence, and utility usage sensors, was methodically deployed at four different home installations of people with cognitive impairment. Detection of sleep patterns, physical activity, and activities of daily living, based on the collected sensor data and analytics, was available at all times through comprehensive data visualization solutions. Combined with clinical observation, targeted psychosocial interventions were introduced to enhance the participants' quality of life and improve their cognitive functions and daily functionality. Meanwhile, participants and their caregivers were able to visualize a reduced set of information tailored to their needs. Overall, paired-sample t-test analysis of monitored qualities revealed improvement for all participants in neuropsychological assessment. Moreover, improvement was detected from the beginning to the end of the trial, in physical condition and in the domains of sleep. Detecting abnormalities via the system, for example in sleep quality, such as REM sleep, has proved to be critical to assess current status, drive interventions, and evaluate improvements in a reliable manner. It has been proved that the proposed system is suitable to support clinicians to reliably drive and evaluate clinical interventions toward quality of life improvement of people with cognitive impairment.

49 CFR 193.2609 - Support systems.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 49 Transportation 3 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Support systems. 193.2609 Section 193.2609 Transportation Other Regulations Relating to Transportation (Continued) PIPELINE AND HAZARDOUS MATERIALS SAFETY...: FEDERAL SAFETY STANDARDS Maintenance § 193.2609 Support systems. Each support system or foundation of each...

Development of decommissioning engineering support system for fugen. Development of support system during actual dismantlement works

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Masanori Izumi; Yukihiro Iguchi; Yoshiki Kannehira

2005-01-01

The Advanced Thermal Reactor, Fugen Nuclear Power Station was permanently shut down in March 2003, and is now preparing for decommissioning. We have been developing Decommissioning Engineering Support System (DEXUS) aimed at planning optimal dismantlement process and carrying out dismantlement work safely and precisely. DEXUS consists of 'decommissioning planning support system' and 'dismantling support system'. The dismantling support system is developed aiming at using during actual dismantling work. It consists of three subsystems such as 'Worksite Visualization System', 'Dismantling Data Collection System' and 'Generated Waste Management System'. 'Worksite Visualization System' is a support system designed to provide the necessary information to workers during actual dismantlement works. And this system adopts AR (Augmented Reality) technology, overlapping calculation information into real world. 'Dismantling Data Collection System' is to collect necessary data for improving accuracy of decommissioning planning by evaluating work content and worker equipage, work time for dismantlement works. 'Generated Waste Management system' is a system recording necessary information by attaching the barcode to dismantled wastes or the containers. We can get the information of generated waste by recording generation place, generated time, treatment method and the contents. These subsystems enable to carry out reasonable and safe decommissioning of Fugen. In addition, we expect that those systems will be used for decommissioning of other nuclear facilities in the future. (authors)

Support system of a structure on a support base

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arene, G.; Renaux, C.; Minguet, J.L.; Chantot, H.

1984-01-01

Two series of strips are fixed to the structure to be supported and to the base to define each one a closed convex envelope; the strips are flexible in the radial direction with regard to the envelope. The two series of strips are connected by a treillis of rigid bars set to form juxtaposed V or X. A good transversal rigidity and a certain radial flexibility are obtained. The invention can be applied to a fast neutron nuclear reactor, the reactor comprising a vertical axis vessel filled with liquid metal; the vessel rests on a support foundation by means of the support system proposed by the invention. The support system allows the supported structure to resist the effects of an eventual earthquake and brutal temperature variations [fr

Design optimization of tailor-rolled blank thin-walled structures based on ɛ-support vector regression technique and genetic algorithm

Science.gov (United States)

Duan, Libin; Xiao, Ning-cong; Li, Guangyao; Cheng, Aiguo; Chen, Tao

2017-07-01

Tailor-rolled blank thin-walled (TRB-TH) structures have become important vehicle components owing to their advantages of light weight and crashworthiness. The purpose of this article is to provide an efficient lightweight design for improving the energy-absorbing capability of TRB-TH structures under dynamic loading. A finite element (FE) model for TRB-TH structures is established and validated by performing a dynamic axial crash test. Different material properties for individual parts with different thicknesses are considered in the FE model. Then, a multi-objective crashworthiness design of the TRB-TH structure is constructed based on the ɛ-support vector regression (ɛ-SVR) technique and non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm-II. The key parameters (C, ɛ and σ) are optimized to further improve the predictive accuracy of ɛ-SVR under limited sample points. Finally, the technique for order preference by similarity to the ideal solution method is used to rank the solutions in Pareto-optimal frontiers and find the best compromise optima. The results demonstrate that the light weight and crashworthiness performance of the optimized TRB-TH structures are superior to their uniform thickness counterparts. The proposed approach provides useful guidance for designing TRB-TH energy absorbers for vehicle bodies.

Operator support systems activities at EPRI

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Naser, J.A.

1993-01-01

The integration of operator support systems supports the nuclear power plant goals of improved availability and reliability, enhanced safety, reduced operations and maintenance costs, and improved productivity. Two major aspects which supports this integration are discussed in this paper. The first is the plant communications and computing architecture which provides the infrastructure that allows the integration to exist in a easy to implement manner. Open systems concepts are utilized to guarantee interoperability of systems and interchangeability of equipment. The second is the EPRI Plant-Window System which supplies the interface between the human and the plant systems. It implements common human-machine interfaces amongst systems and supports the implementation of diagnostic and decision aids. Work in both of these areas is being done as part of the EPRI Instrumentation and Control Upgrade Program. A number of operator support systems have been developed and are in various stages of implementation, testing and utilization. Two of these, the RWCU and the EOPTS, are described here. 5 refs, 14 figs

Space exploration initiative (SEI) logistics support lessons from the DoD

Science.gov (United States)

Cox, John R.; McCoy, Walbert G.; Jenkins, Terence

Proven and innovative logistics management approaches and techniques used for developing and supporting DoD and Strategic Defense Initiative Office (SDIO) systems are described on the basis of input from DoD to the SEI Synthesis Group; SDIO-developed logistics initiatives, innovative tools, and methodologies; and logistics planning support provided to the NASA/Johnson Planet Surface System Office. The approach is tailored for lunar/Martian surface operations, and provides guidelines for the development and management of a crucial element of the SEI logistics support program. A case study is presented which shows how incorporation of DoD's proven and innovative logistics management approach, tools, and techniques can substantially benefit early logistics planning for SEI, while also implementing many of DoD's recommendations for SEI.

Adapting Nielsen's Design Heuristics to Dual Processing for Clinical Decision Support.

Science.gov (United States)

Taft, Teresa; Staes, Catherine; Slager, Stacey; Weir, Charlene

2016-01-01

The study objective was to improve the applicability of Nielson's standard design heuristics for evaluating electronic health record (EHR) alerts and linked ordering support by integrating them with Dual Process theory. Through initial heuristic evaluation and a user study of 7 physicians, usability problems were identified. Through independent mapping of specific usability criteria to support for each of the Dual Cognitive processes (S1 and S2) and deliberation, agreement was reached on mapping criteria. Finally, usability errors from the heuristic and user study were mapped to S1 and S2. Adding a dual process perspective to specific heuristic analysis increases the applicability and relevance of computerized health information design evaluations. This mapping enables designers to measure that their systems are tailored to support attention allocation. System 1 will be supported by improving pattern recognition and saliency, and system 2 through efficiency and control of information access.

Style Guide: An Interdisciplinary Communication Tool to Support the Process of Generating Tailored Infographics From Electronic Health Data Using EnTICE3.

Science.gov (United States)

Arcia, Adriana; Velez, Mark; Bakken, Suzanne

2015-01-01

In this case study we describe key features of the structured communication tool-a style guide-used to support interdisciplinary collaboration, and we propose the use of such a tool for research teams engaged in similar projects. We employ tailored infographics to present patient reported outcome data from a community health survey back, in a comprehensible and actionable manner, to the individuals who provided it. The style guide was developed to bridge the semantic gap between the domain and programming experts engaged in this effort. The style guide supports the communication of complex design specifications in a highly structured format that is nevertheless flexible enough to accommodate project growth. Unlike the typical corporate style guide that has a more narrative format, our style guide is innovative in its use of consistent fields across multiple, standalone entries. The process of populating the style guide prompted the designer toward greater design efficiency and led to consistent and specific instructions that met the framework architect's stated information needs. The guiding values in the creation of the style guide were consistency, clarity, and flexibility. It serves as a durable reference to the desired look and functionality of the final infographic product without dictating an implementation strategy. The style guide format can be adapted to meet the communication needs of other interdisciplinary teams facing a semantic gap.

Design Rules for Life Support Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Harry

2002-01-01

This paper considers some of the common assumptions and engineering rules of thumb used in life support system design. One general design rule is that the longer the mission, the more the life support system should use recycling and regenerable technologies. A more specific rule is that, if the system grows more than half the food, the food plants will supply all the oxygen needed for the crew life support. There are many such design rules that help in planning the analysis of life support systems and in checking results. These rules are typically if-then statements describing the results of steady-state, "back of the envelope," mass flow calculations. They are useful in identifying plausible candidate life support system designs and in rough allocations between resupply and resource recovery. Life support system designers should always review the design rules and make quick steady state calculations before doing detailed design and dynamic simulation. This paper develops the basis for the different assumptions and design rules and discusses how they should be used. We start top-down, with the highest level requirement to sustain human beings in a closed environment off Earth. We consider the crew needs for air, water, and food. We then discuss atmosphere leakage and recycling losses. The needs to support the crew and to make up losses define the fundamental life support system requirements. We consider the trade-offs between resupplying and recycling oxygen, water, and food. The specific choices between resupply and recycling are determined by mission duration, presence of in-situ resources, etc., and are defining parameters of life support system design.

Introduction to Life Support Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Perry, Jay

2017-01-01

This course provides an introduction to the design and development of life support systems to sustain humankind in the harsh environment of space. The life support technologies necessary to provide a respirable atmosphere and clean drinking water are emphasized in the course. A historical perspective, beginning with open loop systems employed aboard the earliest crewed spacecraft through the state-of-the-art life support technology utilized aboard the International Space Station today, will provide a framework for students to consider applications to possible future exploration missions and destinations which may vary greatly in duration and scope. Development of future technologies as well as guiding requirements for designing life support systems for crewed exploration missions beyond low-Earth orbit are also considered in the course.

Protocol for population testing of an Internet-based Personalised Decision Support system for colorectal cancer screening

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wilson Carlene J

2010-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Australia has a comparatively high incidence of colorectal (bowel cancer; however, population screening uptake using faecal occult blood test (FOBT remains low. This study will determine the impact on screening participation of a novel, Internet-based Personalised Decision Support (PDS package. The PDS is designed to measure attitudes and cognitive concerns and provide people with individually tailored information, in real time, that will assist them with making a decision to screen. The hypothesis is that exposure to (tailored PDS will result in greater participation in screening than participation following exposure to non-tailored PDS or resulting from the current non-tailored, paper-based approach. Methods/design A randomised parallel trial comprising three arms will be conducted. Men and women aged 50-74 years (N = 3240 will be recruited. They must have access to the Internet; have not had an FOBT within the previous 12 months, or sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy within the previous 5 years; have had no clinical diagnosis of bowel cancer. Groups 1 and 2 (PDS arms will access a website and complete a baseline survey measuring decision-to-screen stage, attitudes and cognitive concerns and will receive immediate feedback; Group 1 will receive information 'tailored' to their responses in the baseline survey and group 2 will received 'non-tailored' bowel cancer information. Respondents in both groups will subsequently receive an FOBT kit. Group 3 (usual practice arm will complete a paper-based version of the baseline survey and respondents will subsequently receive 'non-tailored' paper-based bowel cancer information with accompanying FOBT kit. Following despatch of FOBTs, all respondents will be requested to complete an endpoint survey. Main outcome measures are (1 completion of FOBT and (2 change in decision-to-screen stage. Secondary outcomes include satisfaction with decision and change in attitudinal scores from baseline to

Deep drawing simulations of tailored blanks and experimental verification

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Meinders, Vincent T.; van den Berg, Albert; Huetink, Han

2000-01-01

Tailored Blanks are increasingly used in the automotive industry. A combination of different materials, thickness, and coatings can be welded together to form a blank for stamping car body panels. The main advantage of using Tailored Blanks is to have specific characteristics at particular parts of

eHealth and the use of individually tailored information: A systematic review.

Science.gov (United States)

Conway, Nicholas; Webster, Clare; Smith, Blair; Wake, Deborah

2017-09-01

Tailored messages are those that specifically target individuals following an assessment of their unique characteristics. This systematic review assesses the evidence regarding the effectiveness of tailoring within eHealth interventions aimed at chronic disease management. OVID Medline/Embase databases were searched for randomised control trials, controlled clinical, trials, before -after studies, and time series analyses from inception - May 2014. Objectively measured clinical processes/outcomes were considered. Twenty-two papers were eligible for inclusion: 6/22 used fully tailored messaging and 16/22 used partially tailored messages. Two studies isolated tailoring as the active component. The remainder compared intervention with standard care. In all, 12/16 studies measuring clinical processes and 2/6 studies reporting clinical outcomes showed improvements, regardless of target group. Study quality was low and design did not allow for identification of interventions' active component. Heterogeneity precluded meta-analysis. This review has demonstrated that there is a lack of evidence to suggest that tailoring within an eHealth context confers benefit over non-tailored eHealth interventions.

Artificial Intelligence (AI), Operations Research (OR), and Decision Support Systems (DSS): A conceptual framework

Science.gov (United States)

Parnell, Gregory S.; Rowell, William F.; Valusek, John R.

1987-01-01

In recent years there has been increasing interest in applying the computer based problem solving techniques of Artificial Intelligence (AI), Operations Research (OR), and Decision Support Systems (DSS) to analyze extremely complex problems. A conceptual framework is developed for successfully integrating these three techniques. First, the fields of AI, OR, and DSS are defined and the relationships among the three fields are explored. Next, a comprehensive adaptive design methodology for AI and OR modeling within the context of a DSS is described. These observations are made: (1) the solution of extremely complex knowledge problems with ill-defined, changing requirements can benefit greatly from the use of the adaptive design process, (2) the field of DSS provides the focus on the decision making process essential for tailoring solutions to these complex problems, (3) the characteristics of AI, OR, and DSS tools appears to be converging rapidly, and (4) there is a growing need for an interdisciplinary AI/OR/DSS education.

Mathematical Modeling Of Life-Support Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Seshan, Panchalam K.; Ganapathi, Balasubramanian; Jan, Darrell L.; Ferrall, Joseph F.; Rohatgi, Naresh K.

1994-01-01

Generic hierarchical model of life-support system developed to facilitate comparisons of options in design of system. Model represents combinations of interdependent subsystems supporting microbes, plants, fish, and land animals (including humans). Generic model enables rapid configuration of variety of specific life support component models for tradeoff studies culminating in single system design. Enables rapid evaluation of effects of substituting alternate technologies and even entire groups of technologies and subsystems. Used to synthesize and analyze life-support systems ranging from relatively simple, nonregenerative units like aquariums to complex closed-loop systems aboard submarines or spacecraft. Model, called Generic Modular Flow Schematic (GMFS), coded in such chemical-process-simulation languages as Aspen Plus and expressed as three-dimensional spreadsheet.

Metal flow of a tailor-welded blank in deep drawing process

Science.gov (United States)

Yan, Qi; Guo, Ruiquan

2005-01-01

Tailor welded blanks were used in the automotive industry to consolidate parts, reduce weight, and increase safety. In recent years, this technology was developing rapidly in China. In Chinese car models, tailor welded blanks had been applied in a lot of automobile parts such as rail, door inner, bumper, floor panel, etc. Concerns on the properties of tailor welded blanks had become more and more important for automobile industry. A lot of research had shown that the strength of the welded seam was higher than that of the base metal, such that the weld failure in the aspect of strength was not a critical issue. However, formability of tailor welded blanks in the stamping process was complex. Among them, the metal flow of tailor welded blanks in the stamping process must be investigated thoroughly in order to reduce the scrap rate during the stamping process in automobile factories. In this paper, the behavior of metal flow for tailor welded blanks made by the laser welding process with two types of different thickness combinations were studied in the deep drawing process. Simulations and experiment verification of the movement of weld line for tailor welded blanks were discussed in detail. Results showed that the control on the movement of welded seam during stamping process by taking some measures in the aspect of blank holder was effective.

The tinker, tailor, soldier in intracellular B12 trafficking.

Science.gov (United States)

Banerjee, Ruma; Gherasim, Carmen; Padovani, Dominique

2009-10-01

The recognition of eight discrete genetic complementation groups among patients with inherited cobalamin disorders provided early insights into the complexity of a cofactor-processing pathway that supports only two known B(12)-dependent enzymes in mammals. With the identification of all eight genes now completed, biochemical interrogations of their functions have started and are providing novel insights into a trafficking pathway involving porters that tinker with and tailor the active cofactor forms and editors that ensure the fidelity of the cofactor loading process. The principles of sequestration and escorted delivery of a rare and reactive organometallic cofactor that are emerging from studies on B(12) might be of general relevance to other cofactor trafficking pathways.

Aeroelastic tailoring of composite aircraft wings

Science.gov (United States)

Mihaila-Andres, Mihai; Larco, Ciprian; Rosu, Paul-Virgil; Rotaru, Constantin

2017-07-01

The need of a continuously increasing size and performance of aerospace structures has settled the composite materials as the preferred materials in aircraft structures. Apart from the clear capacity to reduce the structural weight and with it the manufacture cost and the fuel consumption while preserving proper airworthiness, the prospect of tailoring a structure using the unique directional stiffness properties of composite materials allows an aerospace engineer to optimize aircraft structures to achieve particular design objectives. This paper presents a brief review of what is known as the aeroelastic tailoring of airframes with the intent of understanding the evolution of this research topic and at the same time providing useful references for further studies.

Professional Growth & Support System Self-Assessment

Science.gov (United States)

Education Resource Strategies, 2013

2013-01-01

The "Professional Growth & Support System Self-Assessment" is designed to help school systems evaluate their current Professional Growth & Support strategy. The self-assessment is organized around the "Eight Principles of Strategic Professional Growth & Support." Each section allows school leaders to identify the…

EPICS: operating system independent device/driver support

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kraimer, M.R.

2003-01-01

Originally EPICS input/output controllers (IOCs) were only supported on VME-based systems running the vxWorks operating system. Now IOCs are supported on many systems: vxWorks, RTEMS, Solaris, HPUX, Linux, WIN32, and Darwin. A challenge is to provide operating-system-independent device and driver support. This paper presents some techniques for providing such support. EPICS (Experimental Physics and Industrial Control System) is a set of software tools, libraries, and applications developed collaboratively and used worldwide to create distributed, real-time control systems for scientific instruments such as particle accelerators, telescopes, and other large scientific experiments. An important component of all EPICS-based control systems is a collection of input/output controllers (IOCs). An IOC has three primary components: (1) a real-time database; (2) channel access, which provides network access to the database; and (3) device/driver support for interfacing to equipment. This paper describes some projects related to providing device/driver support on non-vxWorks systems. In order to support IOCs on platforms other than vxWorks, operating-system-independent (OSI) application program interfaces (APIs) were defined for threads, semaphores, timers, etc. Providing support for a new platform consists of providing an operating-system-dependent implementation of the OSI APIs.

Shape-Tailored Features and their Application to Texture Segmentation

KAUST Repository

Khan, Naeemullah

2014-04-01

Texture Segmentation is one of the most challenging areas of computer vision. One reason for this difficulty is the huge variety and variability of textures occurring in real world, making it very difficult to quantitatively study textures. One of the key tools used for texture segmentation is local invariant descriptors. Texture consists of textons, the basic building block of textures, that may vary by small nuisances like illumination variation, deformations, and noise. Local invariant descriptors are robust to these nuisances making them beneficial for texture segmentation. However, grouping dense descriptors directly for segmentation presents a problem: existing descriptors aggregate data from neighborhoods that may contain different textured regions, making descriptors from these neighborhoods difficult to group, leading to significant errors in segmentation. This work addresses this issue by proposing dense local descriptors, called Shape-Tailored Features, which are tailored to an arbitrarily shaped region, aggregating data only within the region of interest. Since the segmentation, i.e., the regions, are not known a-priori, we propose a joint problem for Shape-Tailored Features and the regions. We present a framework based on variational methods. Extensive experiments on a new large texture dataset, which we introduce, show that the joint approach with Shape-Tailored Features leads to better segmentations over the non-joint non Shape-Tailored approach, and the method out-performs existing state-of-the-art.

The use of instrumented gait analysis for individually tailored interdisciplinary interventions in children with cerebral palsy

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rasmussen, Helle Mätzke; Pedersen, Niels Wisbech; Overgaard, Søren

2015-01-01

in gait following individually tailored interventions when IGA is used are superior to those following ‘care as usual’. Methods/Design A prospective, single blind, randomised, parallel group study will be conducted. Children aged 5 to 8 years with spastic CP, classified at Gross Motor Function...... Classification System levels I or II, will be included. The interventions under investigation are: 1) individually tailored interdisciplinary interventions based on the use of IGA, and 2) ‘care as usual’. The primary outcome is gait measured by the Gait Deviation Index. Secondary outcome measures are: walking......Abstract Background Children with cerebral palsy (CP) often have an altered gait. Orthopaedic surgery, spasticity management, physical therapy and orthotics are used to improve the gait. Interventions are individually tailored and are planned on the basis of clinical examinations and standardised...

Patient-tailored modulation of the immune system may revolutionize future lung cancer treatment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Heuvers, Marlies E; Aerts, Joachim G; Cornelissen, Robin; Groen, Harry; Hoogsteden, Henk C; Hegmans, Joost P

2012-01-01

Cancer research has devoted most of its energy over the past decades on unraveling the control mechanisms within tumor cells that govern its behavior. From this we know that the onset of cancer is the result of cumulative genetic mutations and epigenetic alterations in tumor cells leading to an unregulated cell cycle, unlimited replicative potential and the possibility for tissue invasion and metastasis. Until recently it was often thought that tumors are more or less undetected or tolerated by the patient’s immune system causing the neoplastic cells to divide and spread without resistance. However, it is without any doubt that the tumor environment contains a wide variety of recruited host immune cells. These tumor infiltrating immune cells influence anti-tumor responses in opposing ways and emerges as a critical regulator of tumor growth. Here we provide a summary of the relevant immunological cell types and their complex and dynamic roles within an established tumor microenvironment. For this, we focus on both the systemic compartment as well as the local presence within the tumor microenvironment of late-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), admitting that this multifaceted cellular composition will be different from earlier stages of the disease, between NSCLC patients. Understanding the paradoxical role that the immune system plays in cancer and increasing options for their modulation may alter the odds in favor of a more effective anti-tumor immune response. We predict that the future standard of care of lung cancer will involve patient-tailor-made combination therapies that associate (traditional) chemotherapeutic drugs and biologicals with immune modulating agents and in this way complement the therapeutic armamentarium for this disease

Patient-tailored modulation of the immune system may revolutionize future lung cancer treatment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Heuvers Marlies E

2012-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract Cancer research has devoted most of its energy over the past decades on unraveling the control mechanisms within tumor cells that govern its behavior. From this we know that the onset of cancer is the result of cumulative genetic mutations and epigenetic alterations in tumor cells leading to an unregulated cell cycle, unlimited replicative potential and the possibility for tissue invasion and metastasis. Until recently it was often thought that tumors are more or less undetected or tolerated by the patient’s immune system causing the neoplastic cells to divide and spread without resistance. However, it is without any doubt that the tumor environment contains a wide variety of recruited host immune cells. These tumor infiltrating immune cells influence anti-tumor responses in opposing ways and emerges as a critical regulator of tumor growth. Here we provide a summary of the relevant immunological cell types and their complex and dynamic roles within an established tumor microenvironment. For this, we focus on both the systemic compartment as well as the local presence within the tumor microenvironment of late-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC, admitting that this multifaceted cellular composition will be different from earlier stages of the disease, between NSCLC patients. Understanding the paradoxical role that the immune system plays in cancer and increasing options for their modulation may alter the odds in favor of a more effective anti-tumor immune response. We predict that the future standard of care of lung cancer will involve patient-tailor-made combination therapies that associate (traditional chemotherapeutic drugs and biologicals with immune modulating agents and in this way complement the therapeutic armamentarium for this disease.

Advances in Precision Medicine: Tailoring Individualized Therapies.

Science.gov (United States)

Matchett, Kyle B; Lynam-Lennon, Niamh; Watson, R William; Brown, James A L

2017-10-25

The traditional bench-to-bedside pipeline involves using model systems and patient samples to provide insights into pathways deregulated in cancer. This discovery reveals new biomarkers and therapeutic targets, ultimately stratifying patients and informing cohort-based treatment options. Precision medicine (molecular profiling of individual tumors combined with established clinical-pathological parameters) reveals, in real-time, individual patient's diagnostic and prognostic risk profile, informing tailored and tumor-specific treatment plans. Here we discuss advances in precision medicine presented at the Irish Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting, highlighting examples where personalized medicine approaches have led to precision discovery in individual tumors, informing customized treatment programs.

System support software for TSTA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Claborn, G.W.; Mann, L.W.; Nielson, C.W.

1987-01-01

The software at the Tritium Systems Test Assembly (TSTA) is logically broken into two parts, the system support software and the subsystem software. The purpose of the system support software is to isolate the subsystem software from the physical hardware. In this sense the system support software forms the kernel of the software at TSTA. The kernel software performs several functions. It gathers data from CAMAC modules and makes that data available for subsystem processes. It services requests to send commands to CAMAC modules. It provides a system of logging functions and provides for a system-wide global program state that allows highly structured interaction between subsystem processes. The kernel's most visible function is to provide the Man-Machine Interface (MMI). The MMI allows the operators a window into the physical hardware and subsystem process state. Finally the kernel provides a data archiving and compression function that allows archival data to be accessed and plotted. Such kernel software as developed and implemented at TSTA is described

Adapting Nielsen’s Design Heuristics to Dual Processing for Clinical Decision Support

Science.gov (United States)

Taft, Teresa; Staes, Catherine; Slager, Stacey; Weir, Charlene

2016-01-01

The study objective was to improve the applicability of Nielson’s standard design heuristics for evaluating electronic health record (EHR) alerts and linked ordering support by integrating them with Dual Process theory. Through initial heuristic evaluation and a user study of 7 physicians, usability problems were identified. Through independent mapping of specific usability criteria to support for each of the Dual Cognitive processes (S1 and S2) and deliberation, agreement was reached on mapping criteria. Finally, usability errors from the heuristic and user study were mapped to S1 and S2. Adding a dual process perspective to specific heuristic analysis increases the applicability and relevance of computerized health information design evaluations. This mapping enables designers to measure that their systems are tailored to support attention allocation. System 1 will be supported by improving pattern recognition and saliency, and system 2 through efficiency and control of information access. PMID:28269915

Addressing medication nonadherence by mobile phone: development and delivery of tailored messages.

Science.gov (United States)

Gatwood, Justin; Balkrishnan, Rajesh; Erickson, Steven R; An, Lawrence C; Piette, John D; Farris, Karen B

2014-01-01

Medication nonadherence remains a significant public health problem, and efforts to improve adherence have shown only limited impact. The tailoring of messages has become a popular method of developing communication to influence specific health-related behaviors but the development and impact of tailored text messages on medication use is poorly understood. The aim of this paper is to describe an approach to developing theory-based tailored messages for delivery via mobile phone to improve medication adherence among patients with diabetes. Kreuter's five-step tailoring process was followed to create tailored messages for mobile phone delivery. Two focus group sessions, using input from 11 people, and expert review of message content were used to adapt the survey instrument on which the messages were tailored and edit the developed messages for the target population. Following established tailoring methods a library of 168 theory-driven and 128 medication-specific tailored messages were developed and formatted for automated delivery to mobile phones. Concepts from the Health Belief Model and Self-Determination Theory were used to craft the messages and an algorithm was applied to determine the order and timing of messages with the aim of progressively influencing disease and treatment-related beliefs driving adherence to diabetes medication. The process described may be applied to future investigations aiming to improve medication adherence in patients with diabetes and the effectiveness of the current messages will be tested in a planned analysis. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Tailored information about cancer risk and screening: a systematic review.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Albada, A.; Ausems, M.G.E.M.; Bensing, J.M.; Dulmen, S. van

2009-01-01

OBJECTIVE: To study interventions that provide people with information about cancer risk and about screening that is tailored to their personal characteristics. We assess the tailoring characteristics, theory base and effects on risk perception, knowledge and screening behavior of these

Saving energy in 1-D : tailoring energy-saving advice using a Rasch-based energy recommender system

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Starke, Alain; Willemsen, Martijn; Snijders, Chris; Ge, Mouhzi; Ricci, Francesco

2015-01-01

Although there are numerous possibilities to save energy, conservation initiatives often do not tailor their content to the consumer. By considering energy conservation as a one-dimensional construct, where different behaviors have different execution difficulties, we have set out a Rasch-based

Education and training support system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kubota, Rhuji; Iyadomi, Motomi.

1996-01-01

In order to train the specialist such as operator or maintenance stuff of large scale plant such as nuclear power plant or thermal power plant, a high grade teaching and training support system is required as well as in training pilot of aeroplane. The specialist in such large scale plant is also a researcher in the field of machinery, electricity and physics at first, and is grown up a expert operator or maintenance stuff through learning of CAI system or OTJ used training material for teaching tool in addition of training used operating or maintenance training device imitating actual plant after acquiring determined knowledges by receiving fundamental education on nuclear and thermal power plants. In this paper, the teaching and training support systems of the nuclear and thermal power plants for a system supporting such teaching and training, respectively, were introduced. (G.K.)

Comparing Homeless Persons’ Care Experiences in Tailored Versus Nontailored Primary Care Programs

Science.gov (United States)

Holt, Cheryl L.; Steward, Jocelyn L.; Jones, Richard N.; Roth, David L.; Stringfellow, Erin; Gordon, Adam J.; Kim, Theresa W.; Austin, Erika L.; Henry, Stephen Randal; Kay Johnson, N.; Shanette Granstaff, U.; O’Connell, James J.; Golden, Joya F.; Young, Alexander S.; Davis, Lori L.; Pollio, David E.

2013-01-01

Objectives. We compared homeless patients’ experiences of care in health care organizations that differed in their degree of primary care design service tailoring. Methods. We surveyed homeless-experienced patients (either recently or currently homeless) at 3 Veterans Affairs (VA) mainstream primary care settings in Pennsylvania and Alabama, a homeless-tailored VA clinic in California, and a highly tailored non-VA Health Care for the Homeless Program in Massachusetts (January 2011-March 2012). We developed a survey, the “Primary Care Quality-Homeless Survey," to reflect the concerns and aspirations of homeless patients. Results. Mean scores at the tailored non-VA site were superior to those from the 3 mainstream VA sites (P < .001). Adjusting for patient characteristics, these differences remained significant for subscales assessing the patient–clinician relationship (P < .001) and perceptions of cooperation among providers (P = .004). There were 1.5- to 3-fold increased odds of an unfavorable experience in the domains of the patient–clinician relationship, cooperation, and access or coordination for the mainstream VA sites compared with the tailored non-VA site; the tailored VA site attained intermediate results. Conclusions. Tailored primary care service design was associated with a superior service experience for patients who experienced homelessness. PMID:24148052

An intelligent interlock design support system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hayashi, Toshifumi; Kamiyama, Masahiko

1990-01-01

This paper presents an intelligent interlock design support system, called Handy. BWR plant interlocks have been designed on a conventional CAD system operating on a mini-computer based time sharing system. However, its ability to support interlock designers is limited, mainly due to the system not being capable of manipulating the interlock logic. Handy improves the design efficiency with consistent manipulation of the logic and drawings, interlock simulation, versatile database management, object oriented user interface, high resolution high speed graphics, and automatic interlock outlining with a design support expert system. Handy is now being tested by designers, and is expected to greatly contribute to their efficiency. (author)

Dynamism in Electronic Performance Support Systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Laffey, James

1995-01-01

Describes a model for dynamic electronic performance support systems based on NNAble, a system developed by the training group at Apple Computer. Principles for designing dynamic performance support are discussed, including a systems approach, performer-centered design, awareness of situated cognition, organizational memory, and technology use.…

Computer-Supported Information Systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Mayhew, William H.

1983-01-01

The planning and implementation of a computerized management information system at a fictional small college is described. Nine key points are made regarding department involvement, centralization, gradual program implementation, lowering costs, system documentation, and upper-level administrative support. (MSE)

Epartners supporting behavior change

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Otten, W.; Blanson Henkemans, O.A.; Keulen, H. van; Janssen, J.B.; Nunen, A. van

2013-01-01

The present report focuses on developing a comprehensive framework that guides the design of ePartners that support behavior change to promote health. An ePartner is an interactive, virtual or embodied computer assistant to which one can communicate and that assists persons through tailored advice,

System for technical innovation support

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2011-08-01

This book lists field of support system, which includes tax, development work, basic research project, industrial technology, information and communications field, energy field, part and materials field, local industry, the small and medium business such as technical development field, and industry-university collaboration like summary of investment and financing support and guarantee, support of manpower such as brain pool and contact Korea, support of technique like development technology and strategy for patent, support on certification such as company and technical goods, purchase support.

The Promise of Tailoring Incentives for Healthy Behaviors.

Science.gov (United States)

Kullgren, Jeffrey T; Williams, Geoffrey C; Resnicow, Kenneth; An, Lawrence C; Rothberg, Amy; Volpp, Kevin G; Heisler, Michele

2016-01-01

To describe how tailoring financial incentives for healthy behaviors to employees' goals, values, and aspirations might improve the efficacy of incentives. We integrate insights from self-determination theory (SDT) with principles from behavioral economics in the design of financial incentives by linking how incentives could help meet an employee's life goals, values, or aspirations. Tailored financial incentives could be more effective than standard incentives in promoting autonomous motivation necessary to initiate healthy behaviors and sustain them after incentives are removed. Previous efforts to improve the design of financial incentives have tested different incentive designs that vary the size, schedule, timing, and target of incentives. Our strategy for tailoring incentives builds on strong evidence that difficult behavior changes are more successful when integrated with important life goals and values. We outline necessary research to examine the effectiveness of this approach among at-risk employees. Instead of offering simple financial rewards for engaging in healthy behaviors, existing programs could leverage incentives to promote employees' autonomous motivation for sustained health improvements. Effective application of these concepts could lead to programs more effective at improving health, potentially at lower cost. Our approach for the first time integrates key insights from SDT, behavioral economics, and tailoring to turn an extrinsic reward for behavior change into an internalized, self-sustaining motivator for long-term engagement in risk-reducing behaviors.

Life Support Systems: Environmental Monitoring

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The Advanced Exploration Systems (AES) Life Support Systems project Environmental Monitoring (EM) systems task objectives are to develop and demonstrate onboard...

Tailoring stimuli-responsive delivery system driven by metal–ligand coordination bonding

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Liang H

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Hongshan Liang,1–3 Bin Zhou,4 Yun He,1–3 Yaqiong Pei,1–3 Bin Li,1–3 Jing Li1–31College of Food Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, 2Key Laboratory of Environment Correlative Dietology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Ministry of Education, 3Functional Food Engineering & Technology Research Center of Hubei Province, Wuhan, Hubei, 4College of Food Science and Technology, Shanghai Ocean University, LinGang New City, Shanghai, People’s Republic of ChinaAbstract: In this study, a novel coordination bonding system based on metal–tannic acid (TA architecture on zein/carboxymethyl chitosan (CMCS nanoparticles (NPs was investigated for the pH-responsive drug delivery. CMCS has been reported to coat on zein NPs as delivery vehicles for drugs or nutrients in previous studies. The cleavage of either the “metal–TA” or “NH2–metal” coordination bonds resulted in significant release of guest molecules with high stimulus sensitivity, especially in mild acidic conditions. The prepared metal–TA-coated zein/CMCS NPs (zein/CMCS-TA/metal NPs could maintain particle size in cell culture medium at 37°C, demonstrating good stability compared with zein/CMCS NPs. In vitro release behavior of doxorubicin hydrochloride (DOX-loaded metal–TA film-coated zein/CMCS NPs (DOX-zein/CMCS-TA/metal NPs showed fine pH responsiveness tailored by the ratio of zein to CMCS as well as the metal species and feeding concentrations. The blank zein/CMCS-TA/metal NPs (NPs-TA/metal were of low cytotoxicity, while a high cytotoxic activity of DOX-zein/CMCS-TA/metal NPs (DOX-NPs-TA/metal against HepG2 cells was demonstrated by in vitro cell assay. Confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM and flow cytometry were combined to study the uptake efficiency of DOX-NPs or DOX-NPs-TA/metal. This system showed significant potential as a highly versatile and potent platform for drug delivery. Keywords: coordination bonding, pH-responsive, high stimulus

Novel electro-hydraulic position control system for primary mirror supporting system

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiongbin Peng

2016-05-01

Full Text Available In the field of modern large-scale telescope, primary mirror supporting system technology faces the difficulties of theoretically uniform output force request and bias compensation. Therefore, a novel position control system combining hydraulic system with servo motor system is introduced. The novel system ensures uniform output force on supporting points without complicating the mechanical structure. The structures of both primary mirror supporting system and novel position system are described. Then, the mathematical model of novel position control system is derived for controller selection. A proportional–derivative controller is adopted for simulations and experiments of step response and triangle path tracking. The results show that proportional–derivative controller guarantees the system with micrometer-level positioning ability. A modified proportional–derivative controller is utilized to promote system behavior with faster response overshoot. The novel position control system is then applied on primary mirror supporting system. Coupling effect is observed among actuator partitions, and relocation of virtual pivot supporting point is chosen as the decoupling measurement. The position keeping ability of the primary mirror supporting system is verified by rotating the mirror cell at a considerably high rate. The experiment results show that the decoupled system performs better with smaller bias and shorter recovery time.

Tailored Algorithm for Sensitivity Enhancement of Gas Concentration Sensors Based on Tunable Laser Absorption Spectroscopy.

Science.gov (United States)

Vargas-Rodriguez, Everardo; Guzman-Chavez, Ana Dinora; Baeza-Serrato, Roberto

2018-06-04

In this work, a novel tailored algorithm to enhance the overall sensitivity of gas concentration sensors based on the Direct Absorption Tunable Laser Absorption Spectroscopy (DA-ATLAS) method is presented. By using this algorithm, the sensor sensitivity can be custom-designed to be quasi constant over a much larger dynamic range compared with that obtained by typical methods based on a single statistics feature of the sensor signal output (peak amplitude, area under the curve, mean or RMS). Additionally, it is shown that with our algorithm, an optimal function can be tailored to get a quasi linear relationship between the concentration and some specific statistics features over a wider dynamic range. In order to test the viability of our algorithm, a basic C 2 H 2 sensor based on DA-ATLAS was implemented, and its experimental measurements support the simulated results provided by our algorithm.

How lay health workers tailor in effective health behaviour change interventions: a protocol for a systematic review.

Science.gov (United States)

Hodgins, Faith; Gnich, Wendy; Ross, Alastair J; Sherriff, Andrea; Worlledge-Andrew, Heather

2016-06-16

support is individually tailored in effective programmes by LHWs. This study will be of value to those involved in the design and implementation of interventions that utilise a LHW. PROSPERO CRD42015030071.

ELECTRICAL SUPPORT SYSTEM DESCRIPTION DOCUMENT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roy, S.

2004-01-01

The purpose of this revision of the System Design Description (SDD) is to establish requirements that drive the design of the electrical support system and their bases to allow the design effort to proceed to License Application. This SDD is a living document that will be revised at strategic points as the design matures over time. This SDD identifies the requirements and describes the system design as they exist at this time, with emphasis on those attributes of the design provided to meet the requirements. This SDD has been developed to be an engineering tool for design control. Accordingly, the primary audience/users are design engineers. This type of SDD both ''leads'' and ''trails'' the design process. It leads the design process with regard to the flow down of upper tier requirements onto the system. Knowledge of these requirements is essential in performing the design process. The SDD trails the design with regard to the description of the system. The description provided in the SDD is a reflection of the results of the design process to date. Functional and operational requirements applicable to electrical support systems are obtained from the ''Project Functional and Operational Requirements'' (F andOR) (Siddoway 2003). Other requirements to support the design process have been taken from higher-level requirements documents such as the ''Project Design Criteria Document'' (PDC) (Doraswamy 2004), and fire hazards analyses. The above-mentioned low-level documents address ''Project Requirements Document'' (PRD) (Canon and Leitner 2003) requirements. This SDD contains several appendices that include supporting information. Appendix B lists key system charts, diagrams, drawings, and lists, and Appendix C includes a list of system procedures

Integrated Control System Engineering Support.

Science.gov (United States)

1984-12-01

Advanced Medium Range Air to Air Missile ASTEC Advanced Speech Technology Experimental Configuration BA Body Axis BCIU Bus Control Interface Unit BMU Bus...support nreeded to tie an ASTEC speech recognition system into the DIGISYN fJcility and support an FIGR experiment designed to investigate the voice...information passed to the PDP computer consisted of integers which represented words or phrases recognized by the ASTEC recognition system. An interface

Double-tailored nonimaging reflector optics for maximum-performance solar concentration.

Science.gov (United States)

Goldstein, Alex; Gordon, Jeffrey M

2010-09-01

A nonimaging strategy that tailors two mirror contours for concentration near the étendue limit is explored, prompted by solar applications where a sizable gap between the optic and absorber is required. Subtle limitations of this simultaneous multiple surface method approach are derived, rooted in the manner in which phase space boundaries can be tailored according to the edge-ray principle. The fundamental categories of double-tailored reflective optics are identified, only a minority of which can pragmatically offer maximum concentration at high collection efficiency. Illustrative examples confirm that acceptance half-angles as large as 30 mrad can be realized at a flux concentration of approximately 1000.

Personalization and perceived personal relevance in computer-tailored persuasion in smoking cessation.

Science.gov (United States)

Dijkstra, Arie; Ballast, Karien

2012-02-01

In most computer-tailored interventions, the recipient's name is used to personalize the information. This is done to increase the process of persuasion but few empirical data exist that support this notion. An experimental laboratory study was conducted to test the effects of mentioning the participants name and to study whether it was related to the depth of processing in a 2 (personalization/standard) × 2 (weak/strong arguments) design. Over 120 student smokers were randomly assigned to one of the four experimental conditions in which they read smoking cessation messages offering (pre-tested) strong or weak arguments. Personalization was applied by mentioning the recipient's first name three times in the text. The intention to quit smoking was the dependent variable. Personalization increased persuasion when perceived personal relevance was high, but it decreased persuasion when perceived personal relevance was low. The effects on persuasion were only present in the case of strong arguments. Personalization is not always effective, and it may even lead to less persuasion. Therefore, this often used way to tailor messages must be applied with care. ©2011 The British Psychological Society.

Feedback authoring possibilities in web-based learning systems

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Vasilyeva, E.; De Bra, P.M.E.; Pechenizkiy, M.; Bonk, C.J.; et al., xx

2008-01-01

This paper surveys and analyses the feedback authoring possibilities in online assessment modules of the most popular Learning Management Systems (LMS) including Moodle, Sakai, and Blackboard. We consider the problem of authoring and support of tailored and personalized feedback and demonstrate how

Consultation system for image diagnosis: Report formation support system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ikeda, M.; Sakuma, S.; Ishigaki, T.; Suzuki, K.; Oikawa, K.

1987-01-01

The authors developed a consultation system for image diagnosis, involving artificial intelligence ideas. In this system, the authors proposed a new report formation support system and implemented it in lymphangiography. This support system starts with the input of image interpretation. The input process is made mainly by selecting items. This system encodes the input findings into the semantic network, which is represented as a directed graph, and it reserves them into the knowledge database in the above structure. Finally, the output (report) is made in the near natural language, which corresponds to the input findings

Preparing for a decision support system.

Science.gov (United States)

Callan, K

2000-08-01

The increasing pressure to reduce costs and improve outcomes is driving the health care industry to view information as a competitive advantage. Timely information is required to help reduce inefficiencies and improve patient care. Numerous disparate operational or transactional information systems with inconsistent and often conflicting data are no longer adequate to meet the information needs of integrated care delivery systems and networks in competitive managed care environments. This article reviews decision support system characteristics and describes a process to assess the preparedness of an organization to implement and use decision support systems to achieve a more effective, information-based decision process. Decision support tools included in this article range from reports to data mining.

A customized head and neck support system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bentel, Gunilla C.; Marks, Lawrence B.; Sherouse, George W.; Spencer, David P.

1995-01-01

Purpose: To describe a customized head and neck immobilization system for patients receiving radiotherapy including a head support that conforms to the posterior contour of the head and neck. Methods: The system includes a customized headrest to support the posterior head and neck. This is fixed to a thermoplastic face mask that molds to the anterior head/face contours. The shape of these customized head and neck supports were compared to 'standard' supports. Results: This system is comfortable for the patients and appears to be effective in reproducing the setup of the treatment. Conclusions: The variability in the size and shape of the customized posterior supports exceeded that of 'standard' headrests. It is our clinical impression that the customized supports improve reproducibility and are now a standard part of our immobilization system. The quantitative analysis of the customized headrests and some commonly used 'standard' headrests suggests that the customized supports are better able to address variabilities in patient shape

ELECTRICAL SUPPORT SYSTEM DESCRIPTION DOCUMENT

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

S. Roy

2004-06-24

The purpose of this revision of the System Design Description (SDD) is to establish requirements that drive the design of the electrical support system and their bases to allow the design effort to proceed to License Application. This SDD is a living document that will be revised at strategic points as the design matures over time. This SDD identifies the requirements and describes the system design as they exist at this time, with emphasis on those attributes of the design provided to meet the requirements. This SDD has been developed to be an engineering tool for design control. Accordingly, the primary audience/users are design engineers. This type of SDD both ''leads'' and ''trails'' the design process. It leads the design process with regard to the flow down of upper tier requirements onto the system. Knowledge of these requirements is essential in performing the design process. The SDD trails the design with regard to the description of the system. The description provided in the SDD is a reflection of the results of the design process to date. Functional and operational requirements applicable to electrical support systems are obtained from the ''Project Functional and Operational Requirements'' (F&OR) (Siddoway 2003). Other requirements to support the design process have been taken from higher-level requirements documents such as the ''Project Design Criteria Document'' (PDC) (Doraswamy 2004), and fire hazards analyses. The above-mentioned low-level documents address ''Project Requirements Document'' (PRD) (Canon and Leitner 2003) requirements. This SDD contains several appendices that include supporting information. Appendix B lists key system charts, diagrams, drawings, and lists, and Appendix C includes a list of system procedures.

Cluster Dynamics: Laying the Foundation for Tailoring the Design of Cluster ASSE

Science.gov (United States)

2016-02-25

AFRL-AFOSR-VA-TR-2016-0081 CLUSTER DYNAMICS: LAYING THE FOUNDATION FOR TAILORING THE DESIGN OF CLUSTER ASSE Albert Castleman PENNSYLVANIA STATE...15-10-2015 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE CLUSTER DYNAMICS: LAYING THE FOUNDATION FOR TAILORING THE DESIGN OF CLUSTER ASSEMBLED NANOSCALE MATERIALS 5a... clusters as the building blocks of new materials with tailored properties that are beneficial to the AFOSR. Our continuing program is composed of two

Tailoring atomic structure to control the electronic transport in zigzag graphene nanoribbon

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zeng, Hui; Zhao, Jun; Wei, Jianwei; Zeng, Xianliang; Xu, Yang

2012-01-01

We have performed ab initio density functional theory calculation to study the electronic transport properties of the tailored zigzag-edged graphene nanoribbon (ZGNR) with particular electronic transport channels. Our results demonstrated that tailoring the atomic structure had significantly influenced the electronic transport of the defective nanostructures, and could lead to the metal-semiconducting transition when sufficient atoms are tailored. The asymmetric I–V characteristics as a result of symmetry breaking have been exhibited, which indicates the route to utilize GNR as a basic component for novel nanoelectronics. -- Highlights: ► M–S transition induced by tailoring nanostructure. ► Asymmetric I–V curve due to symmetry breaking. ► Controllable electron transport by designing nanofiguration.

Tailoring atomic structure to control the electronic transport in zigzag graphene nanoribbon

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zeng, Hui [College of Physical Science and Technology, Yangtze University, Jingzhou, Hubei 434023 (China); Zhao, Jun, E-mail: zhaojun@yangtzeu.edu.cn [College of Physical Science and Technology, Yangtze University, Jingzhou, Hubei 434023 (China); Wei, Jianwei [College of Optoelectronic Information, Chongqing University of Technology, Chongqing 400054 (China); Zeng, Xianliang [College of Physical Science and Technology, Yangtze University, Jingzhou, Hubei 434023 (China); Xu, Yang [Department of Information Science and Electronic Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310027 (China)

2012-10-01

We have performed ab initio density functional theory calculation to study the electronic transport properties of the tailored zigzag-edged graphene nanoribbon (ZGNR) with particular electronic transport channels. Our results demonstrated that tailoring the atomic structure had significantly influenced the electronic transport of the defective nanostructures, and could lead to the metal-semiconducting transition when sufficient atoms are tailored. The asymmetric I–V characteristics as a result of symmetry breaking have been exhibited, which indicates the route to utilize GNR as a basic component for novel nanoelectronics. -- Highlights: ► M–S transition induced by tailoring nanostructure. ► Asymmetric I–V curve due to symmetry breaking. ► Controllable electron transport by designing nanofiguration.

Single point incremental forming of tailored blanks produced by friction stir welding

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Silva, M.B.; Skjødt, Martin; Vilaca, P.

2009-01-01

fromthe rotating single point-forming tool. Formability of the tailor welded blanks (TWB) is evaluated by means of benchmark tests carried out on truncated conical and pyramidal shapes and results are compared with similar tests performed on conventional reference blanks of the same material. Results show......This paper is focused on the single point incremental forming (SPIF) of tailored welded blanks produced by friction stirwelding (FSW). Special emphasis is placed on the know-how for producing the tailored blanks and on the utilization of innovative forming strategies to protect thewelding joint...... that the combination of SPIF with tailored welded blanks produced by FSW seems promising in the manufacture of complex sheet metal parts with high depths....

Effects of tailoring ingredients in auditory persuasive health messages on fruit and vegetable intake

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Elbert, Sarah P.; Dijkstra, Arie; Rozema, Andrea

2017-01-01

Objective: Health messages can be tailored by applying different tailoring ingredients, among which personalisation, feedback and adaptation. This experiment investigated the separate effects of these tailoring ingredients on behaviour in auditory health persuasion. Furthermore, the moderating

Working mechanisms of computer-tailored health education : evidence from smoking cessation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dijkstra, A.

2005-01-01

To further develop tailored interventions, their working mechanisms must be identified. In the present study, three tailored messages that each contained one potential working mechanism-personalization, adaptation or feedback-were compared with a standard information condition. Two hundred and two

A maintenance support system with document handling capability

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fukumoto, A.; Tsumura, K.; Fujii, M.; Tai, I.; Makimo, M.; Watanabe, T.

1990-01-01

An operation and maintenance support system, called 'Advanced Man-Machine System for Nuclear Power Plants' (MMS-NPP) is under development with the support of the Japanese Government. Taking full advantage of Artificial Intelligence technology, the system aims to enhance the capability of already developed 'Computerized Operator Support System (COSS)' and gives wider and more advanced support for operation and maintenance. With a brief overview of MMS-NPP, this paper describes a support system for plant patrol and equipment inspection. The system gives guidance for plant patrol and for equipment inspection and provides easy access to plant drawings and documents. A unique knowledge acquisition method, utilizing image processing technology, was proposed in building the system

Airport Information Retrieval System (AIRS) System Support Manual

Science.gov (United States)

1973-01-01

This handbook is a support manual for prototype air traffic flow control automation system developed for the FAA's Systems Command Center. The system is implemented on a time-sharing computer and is designed to provide airport traffic load prediction...

A multi-faceted tailored strategy to implement an electronic clinical decision support system for pressure ulcer prevention in nursing homes: A two-armed randomized controlled trial

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Beeckman, D.; Clays, E.; Hecke, A. Van; Vanderwee, K.; Schoonhoven, L.; Verhaeghe, S.

2013-01-01

BACKGROUND: Frail older people admitted to nursing homes are at risk of a range of adverse outcomes, including pressure ulcers. Clinical decision support systems are believed to have the potential to improve care and to change the behaviour of healthcare professionals. OBJECTIVES: To determine

Oromucosal multilayer films for tailor-made, controlled drug delivery.

Science.gov (United States)

Lindert, Sandra; Breitkreutz, Jörg

2017-11-01

The oral mucosa has recently become increasingly important as an alternative administration route for tailor-made, controlled drug delivery. Oromucosal multilayer films, assigned to the monograph oromucosal preparations in the Ph.Eur. may be a promising dosage form to overcome the requirements related to this drug delivery site. Areas covered: We provide an overview of multilayer films as drug delivery tools, and discuss manufacturing processes and characterization methods. We focus on the suitability of characterization methods for particular requirements of multilayer films. A classification was performed covering indication areas and APIs incorporated in multilayer film systems for oromucosal use in order to provide a summary of data published in this field. Expert opinion: The shift in drug development to high molecular weight drugs will influence the field of pharmaceutical development and delivery technologies. For a high number of indication areas, such as hormonal disorders, cardiovascular diseases or local treatment of infections, the flexible layer design of oromucosal multilayer films provides a promising option for tailor-made, controlled delivery of APIs to or through defined surfaces in the oral cavity. However, there is a lack of discriminating or standardized testing methods to assess the quality of multilayer films in a reliable way.

Developing Sustainable Life Support System Concepts

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas, Evan A.

2010-01-01

Sustainable spacecraft life support concepts may allow the development of more reliable technologies for long duration space missions. Currently, life support technologies at different levels of development are not well evaluated against each other, and evaluation methods do not account for long term reliability and sustainability of the hardware. This paper presents point-of-departure sustainability evaluation criteria for life support systems, that may allow more robust technology development, testing and comparison. An example sustainable water recovery system concept is presented.

Evaluation of decision support systems for nuclear accidents

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sdouz, G.; Mueck, K.

1998-05-01

In order to adopt countermeasures to protect the public after an accident in a nuclear power plant in an appropriate and optimum way, decision support systems offer a valuable assistance in supporting the decision maker in choosing and optimizing protective actions. Such decision support systems may range from simple systems to accumulate relevant parameters for the evaluation of the situation over prediction models for the rapid evaluation of the dose to be expected to systems which permit the evaluation and comparison of possible countermeasures. Since the establishment of a decision support systems obviously is also required in Austria, an evaluation of systems available or in the state of development in other countries or unions was performed. The aim was to determine the availability of decision support systems in various countries and to evaluate them with regard to depth and extent of the system. The evaluation showed that in most industrialized countries the requirement for a decision support system was realized, but in only few countries actual systems are readily available and operable. Most systems are limited to early phase consequences, i.e. dispersion calculations of calculated source terms and the estimation of exposure in the vicinity of the plant. Only few systems offer the possibility to predict long-term exposures by ingestion. Few systems permit also an evaluation of potential countermeasures, in most cases, however, limited to a few short-term countermeasures. Only one system which is presently not operable allows the evaluation of a large number of agricultural countermeasures. In this report the different systems are compared. The requirements with regard to an Austrian decision support system are defined and consequences for a possible utilization of a DSS or parts thereof for the Austrian decision support system are derived. (author)

A systematic methodology for design of tailor-made blended products

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Yunus, Nor Alafiza Binti; Gernaey, Krist; Woodley, John

2014-01-01

A systematic methodology for design of tailor-made blended products has been developed. In tailor-made blended products, one identifies the product needs and matches them by blending different chemicals. The systematic methodology has four main tasks. First, the design problem is defined: the pro......, the methodology is highlighted through two case studies involving gasoline blends and lubricant base oils....

TaylorActive--Examining the effectiveness of web-based personally-tailored videos to increase physical activity: a randomised controlled trial protocol.

Science.gov (United States)

Vandelanotte, C; Short, C; Plotnikoff, R C; Hooker, C; Canoy, D; Rebar, A; Alley, S; Schoeppe, S; Mummery, W K; Duncan, M J

2015-10-05

Physical inactivity levels are unacceptably high and effective interventions that can increase physical activity in large populations at low cost are urgently needed. Web-based interventions that use computer-tailoring have shown to be effective, though people tend to 'skim' and 'scan' text on the Internet rather than thoroughly read it. The use of online videos is, however, popular and engaging. Therefore, the aim of this 3-group randomised controlled trial is to examine whether a web-based physical activity intervention that provides personally-tailored videos is more effective when compared with traditional personally-tailored text-based intervention and a control group. In total 510 Australians will be recruited through social media advertisements, e-mail and third party databases. Participants will be randomised to one of three groups: text-tailored, video-tailored, or control. All groups will gain access to the same web-based platform and a library containing brief physical activity articles. The text-tailored group will additionally have access to 8 sessions of personalised physical activity advice that is instantaneously generated based on responses to brief online surveys. The theory-based advice will be provided over a period of 3 months and address constructs such as self-efficacy, motivation, goal setting, intentions, social support, attitudes, barriers, outcome expectancies, relapse prevention and feedback on performance. Text-tailored participants will also be able to complete 7 action plans to help them plan what, when, where, who with, and how they will become more active. Participants in the video-tailored group will gain access to the same intervention content as those in the text-tailored group, however all sessions will be provided as personalised videos rather than text on a webpage. The control group will only gain access to the library with generic physical activity articles. The primary outcome is objectively measured physical activity

LIFE-STYLE SEGMENTATION WITH TAILORED INTERVIEWING

NARCIS (Netherlands)

KAMAKURA, WA; WEDEL, M

The authors present a tailored interviewing procedure for life-style segmentation. The procedure assumes that a life-style measurement instrument has been designed. A classification of a sample of consumers into life-style segments is obtained using a latent-class model. With these segments, the

Tailored central nervous system-directed treatment strategy for isolated CNS recurrence of adult acute myeloid leukemia.

Science.gov (United States)

Zheng, Changcheng; Liu, Xin; Zhu, Weibo; Cai, Xiaoyan; Wu, Jingsheng; Sun, Zimin

2014-06-01

The aim of this report was to investigate the tailored treatment strategies for isolated central nervous system (CNS) recurrence in adult patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Isolated CNS recurrence was documented in 34 patients: there were 18, 6, and 10 patients with meningeal involvement type (type A), cranial nerve palsy type (type B), and myeloid sarcoma type (type C), respectively. For patients with type A, intrathecal chemotherapy was the predominant strategy. For type B, systemic HD-Ara-C with four cycles was the main treatment. For type C, cranial irradiation or craniospinal irradiation was adopted and two cycles of HD-Ara-C were given after the irradiation. The 5-year cumulative incidence of CNS recurrence was 12.8%. There was a significantly higher WBC count (32.6∼60.8 × 10(9)/l) in patients at first diagnosis who developed CNS recurrence (all of the three types) compared with patients with no CNS recurrence (10.1 × 10(9)/l) (P = 0.005). We found that a significantly more patients with AML-M5 and 11q23 abnormalities developed CNS recurrence in type A (P adult AML, but further studies are needed to improve the long-term survival.

Shape-Tailorable Graphene-Based Ultra-High-Rate Supercapacitor for Wearable Electronics.

Science.gov (United States)

Xie, Binghe; Yang, Cheng; Zhang, Zhexu; Zou, Peichao; Lin, Ziyin; Shi, Gaoquan; Yang, Quanhong; Kang, Feiyu; Wong, Ching-Ping

2015-06-23

With the bloom of wearable electronics, it is becoming necessary to develop energy storage units, e.g., supercapacitors that can be arbitrarily tailored at the device level. Although gel electrolytes have been applied in supercapacitors for decades, no report has studied the shape-tailorable capability of a supercapacitor, for instance, where the device still works after being cut. Here we report a tailorable gel-based supercapacitor with symmetric electrodes prepared by combining electrochemically reduced graphene oxide deposited on a nickel nanocone array current collector with a unique packaging method. This supercapacitor with good flexibility and consistency showed excellent rate performance, cycling stability, and mechanical properties. As a demonstration, these tailorable supercapacitors connected in series can be used to drive small gadgets, e.g., a light-emitting diode (LED) and a minimotor propeller. As simple as it is (electrochemical deposition, stencil printing, etc.), this technique can be used in wearable electronics and miniaturized device applications that require arbitrarily shaped energy storage units.

Tailored online cognitive behavioural therapy with or without therapist support calls to target psychological distress in adults receiving haemodialysis: A feasibility randomised controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Hudson, Joanna L; Moss-Morris, Rona; Norton, Sam; Picariello, Federica; Game, David; Carroll, Amy; Spencer, Jonathan; McCrone, Paul; Hotopf, Matthew; Yardley, Lucy; Chilcot, Joseph

2017-11-01

Psychological distress is prevalent in haemodialysis (HD) patients yet access to psychotherapy remains limited. This study assessed the feasibility and acceptability of online cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) tailored for HD patients, with or without therapist support, for managing psychological distress. This feasibility randomised controlled trial recruited patients from a UK HD centre. Following psychological distress screens, patients with mild-moderate psychological distress (Patient Health Questionnaire PHQ-9; score: 5-19 and/or Generalised Anxiety Disorder; GAD-7 score: 5-14) who met remaining inclusion criteria were approached for consent. Consenters were individually randomised (1:1) to online-CBT or online-CBT plus three therapist support calls. Outcomes included recruitment, retention, and adherence rates. Exploratory change analyses were performed for: psychological distress, quality of life (QoL), illness perceptions, and costs. The statistician was blinded to allocation. 182 (44%) out of 410 patients approached completed psychological distress screens. 26% found screening unacceptable; a further 30% found it unfeasible. Psychological distress was detected in 101 (55%) patients, 60 of these met remaining inclusion criteria. The primary reason for ineligibility was poor computer literacy (N=17, 53%). Twenty-five patients were randomised to the supported (N=18) or unsupported arm (N=7); 92% were retained at follow-up. No differences in psychological distress or cost-effectiveness were observed. No trial adverse events occurred. Online CBT appears feasible but only for computer literate patients who identify with the label psychological distress. A definitive trial using the current methods for psychological distress screening and online care delivery is unfeasible. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02352870. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Tailoring the microstructure of porous MgO supports for asymmetric oxygen separation membranes: Optimization of thermoplastic feedstock systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kothanda Ramachandran, Dhavanesan; Clemens, F.; Glasscock, Julie

2014-01-01

Porous magnesium oxide (MgO) structures were prepared by thermoplastic processing for use as supports in asymmetric thin film oxygen transport membranes (OTMs). The open porosity, pore size distribution, and resulting gas permeability of the MgO structures were measured for different feedstock...

Optimizing engagement with Internet-based health behaviour change interventions: comparison of self-assessment with and without tailored feedback using a mixed methods approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Morrison, Leanne; Moss-Morris, Rona; Michie, Susan; Yardley, Lucy

2014-11-01

Internet-based health behaviour interventions have variable effects on health-related outcomes. Effectiveness may be improved by optimizing the design of interventions. This study examined the specific effect on engagement of providing two different design features - tailoring and self-assessment. Three versions of an Internet-delivered intervention to support the self-care of mild bowel problems were developed that provided (1) self-assessment without tailored feedback, (2) self-assessment with tailored feedback, and (3) generic information only. A qualitative study explored participants' engagement with each version of the intervention (N = 24). A larger quantitative study systematically compared participants' use of the intervention and self-reported engagement using a partial factorial design (n = 178). Findings from the qualitative study suggested that self-assessment without tailored feedback appeared to be less acceptable to participants because it was viewed as offering no personal benefit in the absence of personalized advice. In the quantitative study, self-assessment without tailored feedback was associated with greater dropout than when provided in conjunction with tailored feedback. There were significant group differences in participants' engagement with the intervention and perceptions of the intervention. Self-assessment without tailored feedback was rated as marginally less engaging and was associated with fewer positive perceptions than the generic information condition. The acceptability of self-assessment or monitoring components may be optimized by also providing tailored feedback. Without tailored feedback, these components do not appear to be any more engaging than generic information provision. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject? Digital interventions can be effective for improving a range of health outcomes and behaviours. There is huge variation in the success of different interventions using different

Web-Based Learning Support System

Science.gov (United States)

Fan, Lisa

Web-based learning support system offers many benefits over traditional learning environments and has become very popular. The Web is a powerful environment for distributing information and delivering knowledge to an increasingly wide and diverse audience. Typical Web-based learning environments, such as Web-CT, Blackboard, include course content delivery tools, quiz modules, grade reporting systems, assignment submission components, etc. They are powerful integrated learning management systems (LMS) that support a number of activities performed by teachers and students during the learning process [1]. However, students who study a course on the Internet tend to be more heterogeneously distributed than those found in a traditional classroom situation. In order to achieve optimal efficiency in a learning process, an individual learner needs his or her own personalized assistance. For a web-based open and dynamic learning environment, personalized support for learners becomes more important. This chapter demonstrates how to realize personalized learning support in dynamic and heterogeneous learning environments by utilizing Adaptive Web technologies. It focuses on course personalization in terms of contents and teaching materials that is according to each student's needs and capabilities. An example of using Rough Set to analyze student personal information to assist students with effective learning and predict student performance is presented.

Supporting of mine workings and design of support systems. Madenlerde tahkimat isleri ve tasarmi

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Biron, C; Arioglu, E; (Istanbul Teknik Universitesi, Maden Fakultesi)

1980-01-01

This article deals with elements of elasticity in rocks and examines the engineering properties of rocks. It includes stress distributions around mine openings and deformations of mine openings. Strata control concept in coal mining is explained. Support systems in stone drifts, gateways, shafts and longwalls are discussed; timber supports, steel arches, articulated arches, roof bolting, concrete supports, supports on mechanized faces are detailed. Emphasis is placed upon engineering properties of materials of support systems. The design concepts of mine support systems are described. The objects of the design are expressed with several numerical examples. It concludes with stowing: pneumatic stowing, and hydraulic stowing in metal and coal mining.

RELATIONSHIP MARKETING RESEARCH TAILORED TO SUPPORT SALES MANAGEMENT. CASE STUDY: AN INTERNATIONAL EXPRESS LOGISTICS COMPANY IN ROMANIA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fotea Ioan Stefan

2010-07-01

Full Text Available Within current economy context, complexities and particularities most companies are constantly seeking to maximize effectiveness and efficiency of their business. As sales force represents for most organizations their “spearheds”and direct contact with the market, its management can be a source for customer satisfaction and overall efficiency. Relationship marketing research with all its particularities and dimensions, if tailored appropriately can explicitly pinpoint major sources of customer satisfaction and dissatisfaction. Focus of contemporary relationship marketing is the customer viewed across lifetime as a profit source and partner rather than on short term for singular transactions. Research findings help the organization better manage its sales force and generate customer satisfaction, retention and loyalty and maximize profits while achieving superior efficiency.

Tailored release drug delivery system for rifampicin and isoniazid for enhanced bioavailability of rifampicin.

Science.gov (United States)

Avachat, Amelia M; Bhise, Satish B

2011-04-01

The front line antitubercular drugs rifampicin (RMP) and isoniazid (INH), when co-administered, face the problem of reduced bioavailability of RMP. Stabilization of RMP in the presence of INH under acidic environment may improve the bioavailability of RMP. In vitro degradation studies showed around 15-25% degradation of RMP under the aforesaid conditions if the ratio of RMP: INH is above 1:0.5.This degradation is reduced to less than 10% when the ratio of RMP: INH is below 1:0.25. Based on these findings, an innovative drug delivery system was designed with the immediate release of RMP and tailored prolonged release of INH. The bilayer tablets prepared with this concept were subjected to relative bioavailability studies in healthy human volunteers in an open label, balanced, randomized, single-dose, cross-over study under fasted state. A validated LC-MS/MS bioanalytical method was employed for estimation of RMP and INH in plasma. Bioavailability studies revealed that C(max) and AUC for RMP increased by 18 and 20%, respectively, confirming the above innovative concept. Even in the case of INH, AUC increased significantly by around 30% and thus time above minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) would also increase, which may result in further improved clinical outcome.

Safety implications of electronic driving support systems : an orientation.

OpenAIRE

Gundy, C.M. Steyvers, F.J.J.M. & Kaptein, N.A.

1995-01-01

This report focuses on traffic safety aspects of driving support systems. The report consists of two parts. First of all, the report discusses a number of topics, relevant for the implementation and evaluation of driving support systems. These topics include: (1) safety research into driving support systems: (2) the importance of research into driver models and the driving task; (3) horizontal integration of driving support systems; (4) vertical integration of driving support systems; (5) tas...

Tailoring the slow light behavior in terahertz metasurfaces

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Manjappa, Manukumara; Cong, Longqing; Singh, Ranjan, E-mail: ranjans@ntu.edu.sg [Center for Disruptive Photonic Technologies, Division of Physics and Applied Physics, School of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, 21 Nanyang Link, Singapore 637371 (Singapore); Chiam, Sher-Yi [NUS High School of Math and Science, 20 Clementi Avenue 1, Singapore, Singapore 129957 (Singapore); Bettiol, Andrew A. [Department of Physics, National University of Singapore, Science Drive 3, Singapore, Singapore 117542 (Singapore); Zhang, Weili [School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Oklahoma State University, 202 Engineering South, Stillwater, Oklahoma 74078 (United States)

2015-05-04

We experimentally study the effect of near field coupling on the transmission of light in terahertz metasurfaces. Our results show that tailoring the coupling between the resonators modulates the amplitude of resulting electromagnetically induced transmission, probed under different types of asymmetries in the coupled system. Observed change in the transmission amplitude is attributed to the change in the amount of destructive interference between the resonators in the vicinity of strong near field coupling. We employ a two-particle model to theoretically study the influence of the coupling between bright and quasi-dark modes on the transmission properties of the system and we find an excellent agreement with our observed results. Adding to the enhanced transmission characteristics, our results provide a deeper insight into the metamaterial analogues of atomic electromagnetically induced transparency and offer an approach to engineer slow light devices, broadband filters, and attenuators at terahertz frequencies.

Uptake of Tailored Text Message Smoking Cessation Support in Pregnancy When Advertised on the Internet (MiQuit): Observational Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Emery, Joanne L; Coleman, Tim; Sutton, Stephen; Cooper, Sue; Leonardi-Bee, Jo; Jones, Matthew; Naughton, Felix

2018-04-19

Smoking in pregnancy is a major public health concern. Pregnant smokers are particularly difficult to reach, with low uptake of support options and few effective interventions. Text message-based self-help is a promising, low-cost intervention for this population, but its real-world uptake is largely unknown. The objective of this study was to explore the uptake and cost-effectiveness of a tailored, theory-guided, text message intervention for pregnant smokers ("MiQuit") when advertised on the internet. Links to a website providing MiQuit initiation information (texting a short code) were advertised on a cost-per-click basis on 2 websites (Google Search and Facebook; £1000 budget each) and free of charge within smoking-in-pregnancy webpages on 2 noncommercial websites (National Childbirth Trust and NHS Choices). Daily budgets were capped to allow the Google and Facebook adverts to run for 1 and 3 months, respectively. We recorded the number of times adverts were shown and clicked on, the number of MiQuit initiations, the characteristics of those initiating MiQuit, and whether support was discontinued prematurely. For the commercial adverts, we calculated the cost per initiation and, using quit rates obtained from an earlier clinical trial, estimated the cost per additional quitter. With equal capped budgets, there were 812 and 1889 advert clicks to the MiQuit website from Google (search-based) and Facebook (banner) adverts, respectively. MiQuit was initiated by 5.2% (42/812) of those clicking via Google (95% CI 3.9%-6.9%) and 2.22% (42/1889) of those clicking via Facebook (95% CI 1.65%-2.99%). Adverts on noncommercial webpages generated 53 clicks over 6 months, with 9 initiations (9/53, 17%; 95% CI 9%-30%). For the commercial websites combined, mean cost per initiation was £24.73; estimated cost per additional quitter, including text delivery costs, was £735.86 (95% CI £227.66-£5223.93). Those initiating MiQuit via Google were typically very early in pregnancy

An Internet-based tailored hearing protection intervention for firefighters: development process and users' feedback.

Science.gov (United States)

Hong, OiSaeng; Eakin, Brenda L; Chin, Dal Lae; Feld, Jamie; Vogel, Stephen

2013-07-01

Noise-induced hearing loss is a significant occupational injury for firefighters exposed to intermittent noise on the job. It is important to educate firefighters about using hearing protection devices whenever they are exposed to loud noise. Computer technology is a relatively new health education approach and can be useful for tailoring specific aspects of behavioral change training. The purpose of this study is to present the development process of an Internet-based tailored intervention program and to assess its efficacy. The intervention programs were implemented for 372 firefighters (mean age = 44 years, Caucasian = 82%, male = 95%) in three states (California, Illinois, and Indiana). The efficacy was assessed from firefighters' feedback through an Internet-based survey. A multimedia Internet-based training program was developed through (a) determining program content and writing scripts, (b) developing decision-making algorithms for tailoring, (c) graphic design and audio and video productions, (d) creating computer software and a database, and (e) postproduction quality control and pilot testing. Participant feedback regarding the training has been very positive. Participants reported that they liked completing the training via computer (83%) and also that the Internet-based training program was well organized (97%), easy to use (97%), and effective (98%) and held their interest (79%). Almost all (95%) would recommend this Internet training program to other firefighters. Interactive multimedia computer technology using the Internet was a feasible mode of delivery for a hearing protection intervention among firefighters. Participants' favorable feedback strongly supports the continued utilization of this approach for designing and developing interventions to promote healthy behaviors.

Engineering support strategies in the competitive environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Casella, L.R.; Hall, T.E.; Stark, D.R.

1996-01-01

This paper focuses on the innovative use of support personnel during plant outages and other maintenance/upkeep periods. At the South Texas Project the authors have formed an engineering support group specifically tailored to provide real time solutions to maintenance and operation problems. The core group consists of a cross section from the engineering disciplines and systems engineers. The group is housed in the Maintenance and Operations Facility adjacent to the power block. Close proximity and maintenance and operations personnel improves communications and response to emergent technical issues. During outages the group is augmented with additional personnel from the Design and Systems Engineering Departments. This allows for around the clock support that directly complements plant operations activities and maintenance tasks. The Thirty Minute Rule highlights urgent issues requiring engineering management attention. Dedicated twenty-four (24) hour engineering management oversight completes the engineering outage support package. Revised procedures, networks, and software enhancements, streamline the interface between engineering and work control processes. Good communications across the engineering disciplines and departments provide for enhanced teamwork and timely resolution of emergent technical issues for customers. The techniques to be described in the paper contributed directly to the South Texas Project recently establishing a new world record for a Westinghouse 3 and 4 loop pressurized water reactor refueling outage

Life Support Systems: Wastewater Processing and Water Management

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Advanced Exploration Systems (AES) Life Support Systems project Wastewater Processing and Water Management task: Within an integrated life support system, water...

Recommendations on future development of decision support systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

MCarthur, Stephen; Chen, Minjiang; Marinelli, Mattia

Deliverable 8.3 reports on the consolidation of experiences from visualisation, decision support prototypes experiments and recommendations on future developments of decision support systems......Deliverable 8.3 reports on the consolidation of experiences from visualisation, decision support prototypes experiments and recommendations on future developments of decision support systems...

'Rapid Learning health care in oncology' - an approach towards decision support systems enabling customised radiotherapy'.

Science.gov (United States)

Lambin, Philippe; Roelofs, Erik; Reymen, Bart; Velazquez, Emmanuel Rios; Buijsen, Jeroen; Zegers, Catharina M L; Carvalho, Sara; Leijenaar, Ralph T H; Nalbantov, Georgi; Oberije, Cary; Scott Marshall, M; Hoebers, Frank; Troost, Esther G C; van Stiphout, Ruud G P M; van Elmpt, Wouter; van der Weijden, Trudy; Boersma, Liesbeth; Valentini, Vincenzo; Dekker, Andre

2013-10-01

An overview of the Rapid Learning methodology, its results, and the potential impact on radiotherapy. Rapid Learning methodology is divided into four phases. In the data phase, diverse data are collected about past patients, treatments used, and outcomes. Innovative information technologies that support semantic interoperability enable distributed learning and data sharing without additional burden on health care professionals and without the need for data to leave the hospital. In the knowledge phase, prediction models are developed for new data and treatment outcomes by applying machine learning methods to data. In the application phase, this knowledge is applied in clinical practice via novel decision support systems or via extensions of existing models such as Tumour Control Probability models. In the evaluation phase, the predictability of treatment outcomes allows the new knowledge to be evaluated by comparing predicted and actual outcomes. Personalised or tailored cancer therapy ensures not only that patients receive an optimal treatment, but also that the right resources are being used for the right patients. Rapid Learning approaches combined with evidence based medicine are expected to improve the predictability of outcome and radiotherapy is the ideal field to study the value of Rapid Learning. The next step will be to include patient preferences in the decision making. Copyright © 2013 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Learning to Control Advanced Life Support Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Subramanian, Devika

2004-01-01

Advanced life support systems have many interacting processes and limited resources. Controlling and optimizing advanced life support systems presents unique challenges. In particular, advanced life support systems are nonlinear coupled dynamical systems and it is difficult for humans to take all interactions into account to design an effective control strategy. In this project. we developed several reinforcement learning controllers that actively explore the space of possible control strategies, guided by rewards from a user specified long term objective function. We evaluated these controllers using a discrete event simulation of an advanced life support system. This simulation, called BioSim, designed by Nasa scientists David Kortenkamp and Scott Bell has multiple, interacting life support modules including crew, food production, air revitalization, water recovery, solid waste incineration and power. They are implemented in a consumer/producer relationship in which certain modules produce resources that are consumed by other modules. Stores hold resources between modules. Control of this simulation is via adjusting flows of resources between modules and into/out of stores. We developed adaptive algorithms that control the flow of resources in BioSim. Our learning algorithms discovered several ingenious strategies for maximizing mission length by controlling the air and water recycling systems as well as crop planting schedules. By exploiting non-linearities in the overall system dynamics, the learned controllers easily out- performed controllers written by human experts. In sum, we accomplished three goals. We (1) developed foundations for learning models of coupled dynamical systems by active exploration of the state space, (2) developed and tested algorithms that learn to efficiently control air and water recycling processes as well as crop scheduling in Biosim, and (3) developed an understanding of the role machine learning in designing control systems for

I Move: systematic development of a web-based computer tailored physical activity intervention, based on motivational interviewing and self-determination theory

Science.gov (United States)

2014-01-01

Background This article describes the systematic development of the I Move intervention: a web-based computer tailored physical activity promotion intervention, aimed at increasing and maintaining physical activity among adults. This intervention is based on the theoretical insights and practical applications of self-determination theory and motivational interviewing. Methods/design Since developing interventions in a systemically planned way increases the likelihood of effectiveness, we used the Intervention Mapping protocol to develop the I Move intervention. In this article, we first describe how we proceeded through each of the six steps of the Intervention Mapping protocol. After that, we describe the content of the I Move intervention and elaborate on the planned randomized controlled trial. Discussion By integrating self-determination theory and motivational interviewing in web-based computer tailoring, the I Move intervention introduces a more participant-centered approach than traditional tailored interventions. Adopting this approach might enhance computer tailored physical activity interventions both in terms of intervention effectiveness and user appreciation. We will evaluate this in an randomized controlled trial, by comparing the I Move intervention to a more traditional web-based computer tailored intervention. Trial registration NTR4129 PMID:24580802

Axiomatic Design of Space Life Support Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Harry W.

2017-01-01

Systems engineering is an organized way to design and develop systems, but the initial system design concepts are usually seen as the products of unexplained but highly creative intuition. Axiomatic design is a mathematical approach to produce and compare system architectures. The two axioms are:- Maintain the independence of the functional requirements.- Minimize the information content (or complexity) of the design. The first axiom generates good system design structures and the second axiom ranks them. The closed system human life support architecture now implemented in the International Space Station has been essentially unchanged for fifty years. In contrast, brief missions such as Apollo and Shuttle have used open loop life support. As mission length increases, greater system closure and increased recycling become more cost-effective.Closure can be gradually increased, first recycling humidity condensate, then hygiene wastewater, urine, carbon dioxide, and water recovery brine. A long term space station or planetary base could implement nearly full closure, including food production. Dynamic systems theory supports the axioms by showing that fewer requirements, fewer subsystems, and fewer interconnections all increase system stability. If systems are too complex and interconnected, reliability is reduced and operations and maintenance become more difficult. Using axiomatic design shows how the mission duration and other requirements determine the best life support system design including the degree of closure.

Overview of Actuated Arm Support Systems and Their Applications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

E.A. Lomonova

2013-10-01

Full Text Available Arm support systems provide support throughout daily tasks, training or in an industrial environment. During the last decades a large diversity of actuated arm support systems have been developed. To analyze the actuation principles in these systems, an overview of actuated arm support systems is provided. This overview visualizes the current trends on research and development of these support systems and distinguishes three categories. These categories depend mainly on the functional status of the user environment, which defines the specifications. Therefore, the actuated arm support systems are classified according to their user environment, namely: ambulatory, rehabilitation and industrial. Furthermore, three main actuation principles and three mechanical construction principles have been identified.

Antibacterial resistance and the success of tailored triple therapy in Helicobacter pylori strains isolated from Slovenian children.

Science.gov (United States)

Butenko, Tita; Jeverica, Samo; Orel, Rok; Homan, Matjaž

2017-10-01

Primary Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection occurs predominantly in childhood. Antimicrobial resistance is the leading cause for H. pylori eradication failure. The aims of this study were (i) to establish for the first time the antimicrobial resistance of H. pylori strains in infected Slovenian children not previously treated for H. pylori infection and (ii) to evaluate the effectiveness of tailored triple therapy, assuming that eradication rate with tailored triple therapy will be >90%. Data on all treatment-naive children 1-18 years old and treated for H. pylori infection according to susceptibility testing were retrospectively analyzed. All relevant clinical information and demographical information were retrospectively collected from the hospital information systems and/or patients' medical documentation. The inclusion criteria were met by 107 children (64.5% girls) with a median age of 12.0 years (range 2.0-17.6 years). Primary antimicrobial resistance rates of H. pylori were 1.0% to amoxicillin (AMO), 23.4% to clarithromycin (CLA), 20.2% to metronidazole (MET), 2.8% to levofloxacin (LEV), and 0.0% to tetracycline (TET). Dual resistances were detected to CLA and MET in 11.5% (n=12) of strains, to CLA and LEV in 2.8% (n=3), and to MET and LEV in 2.9% (n=3). Results of treatment success were available for 71 patients (66.2% girls). Eradication of H. pylori was evaluated using the 13C-urea breath test, monoclonal stool antigen test or in some cases with repeated upper GI endoscopy with histology and cultivation/molecular tests. Eradication was achieved in 61 of 71 (85.9%) patients. The primary resistance rates of H. pylori to CLA and MET in Slovenia are high. Our data strongly support the fact that in countries with high prevalence of resistant H. pylori strains susceptibility testing and tailored therapy is essential. © 2017 The Authors Helicobacter Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Tailoring surface groups of carbon quantum dots to improve photoluminescence behaviors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tian, Ruixue; Hu, Shengliang; Wu, Lingling; Chang, Qing; Yang, Jinlong; Liu, Jun

2014-01-01

Highlights: • We develop a facile and green method to tailor surface groups. • Photoluminescence behaviors of carbon quantum dots are improved by tailoring their surface groups. • Highly luminescent efficiency is produced by amino-hydrothermal treatment of reduced carbon quantum dots. - Abstract: A facile and green method to tailor surface groups of carbon quantum dots (CQDs) is developed by hydrothermal treatment in an autoclave. The photoluminescence (PL) behaviors of CQDs depend on the types of surface groups. Highly efficient photoluminescence is obtained through amino-hydrothermal treatment of the CQDs reduced by NaBH 4 . The effects of surface groups on PL behavior are attributed to the degrees of energy band bending induced by surface groups

Improving Health and Reducing Comorbidity Associated with HIV: The Development of TAVIE en santé, a Web-Based Tailored Intervention to Support the Adoption of Health Promoting Behaviors among People Living with HIV

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

José Côté

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Background. In the domain of health behavior change, the deployment and utilization of information and communications technologies as a way to deliver interventions appear to be promising. This article describes the development of a web-based tailored intervention, TAVIE en santé, to support people living with HIV in the adoption of healthy behaviors. Methods. This intervention was developed through an Intervention Mapping (IM framework and is based on the theory of planned behavior. Results. Crucial steps of IM are the selection of key determinants of behavior and the selection of useful theory-based intervention methods to change the targeted determinants (active ingredients. The content and the sequence of the intervention are then created based on these parameters. TAVIE en santé is composed of 7 interactive web sessions hosted by a virtual nurse. It aims to develop and strengthen skills required for behavior change. Based on an algorithm using individual cognitive data (attitude, perceived behavioral control, and intention, the number of sessions, theory-based intervention methods, and messages contents are tailored to each user. Conclusion. TAVIE en santé is currently being evaluated. The use of IM allows developing intervention with a systematic approach based on theory, empirical evidence, and clinical and experiential knowledge.

The utility of an online diagnostic decision support system (Isabel) in general practice: a process evaluation.

Science.gov (United States)

Henderson, Emily J; Rubin, Greg P

2013-05-01

To evaluate the utility of Isabel, an online diagnostic decision support system developed by Isabel Healthcare primarily for secondary medical care, in the general practice setting. Focus groups were conducted with clinicians to understand why and how they used the system. A modified online post-use survey asked practitioners about its impact on their decision-making. Normalization process theory (NPT) was used as a theoretical framework to determine whether the system could be incorporated into routine clinical practice. The system was introduced by NHS County Durham and Darlington in the UK in selected general practices as a three-month pilot. General practitioners and nurse practitioners who had access to Isabel as part of the Primary Care Trust's pilot. General practitioners' views, experiences and usage of the system. Seven general practices agreed to pilot Isabel. Two practices did not subsequently use it. The remaining five practices conducted searches on 16 patients. Post-use surveys (n = 10) indicated that Isabel had little impact on diagnostic decision-making. Focus group participants stated that, although the diagnoses produced by Isabel in general did not have an impact on their decision-making, they would find the tool useful if it were better tailored to the primary care setting. Our analysis concluded that normalization was not likely to occur in its current form. Isabel was of limited utility in this short pilot study and may need further modification for use in general practice.

Adaptive Collaboration Support Systems : Designing Collaboration Support for Dynamic Environments

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Janeiro, J.; Knoll, S.W.; Lukosch, S.G.; Kolfschoten, G.L.

2012-01-01

Today, engineering systems offer a variety of local and webbased applications to support collaboration by assisting groups in structuring activities, generating and sharing data, and improving group communication. To ensure the quality of collaboration, engineering system design needs to analyze and

Preventing smoking relapse via Web-based computer-tailored feedback: a randomized controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Elfeddali, Iman; Bolman, Catherine; Candel, Math J J M; Wiers, Reinout W; de Vries, Hein

2012-08-20

Web-based computer-tailored approaches have the potential to be successful in supporting smoking cessation. However, the potential effects of such approaches for relapse prevention and the value of incorporating action planning strategies to effectively prevent smoking relapse have not been fully explored. The Stay Quit for You (SQ4U) study compared two Web-based computer-tailored smoking relapse prevention programs with different types of planning strategies versus a control group. To assess the efficacy of two Web-based computer-tailored programs in preventing smoking relapse compared with a control group. The action planning (AP) program provided tailored feedback at baseline and invited respondents to do 6 preparatory and coping planning assignments (the first 3 assignments prior to quit date and the final 3 assignments after quit date). The action planning plus (AP+) program was an extended version of the AP program that also provided tailored feedback at 11 time points after the quit attempt. Respondents in the control group only filled out questionnaires. The study also assessed possible dose-response relationships between abstinence and adherence to the programs. The study was a randomized controlled trial with three conditions: the control group, the AP program, and the AP+ program. Respondents were daily smokers (N = 2031), aged 18 to 65 years, who were motivated and willing to quit smoking within 1 month. The primary outcome was self-reported continued abstinence 12 months after baseline. Logistic regression analyses were conducted using three samples: (1) all respondents as randomly assigned, (2) a modified sample that excluded respondents who did not make a quit attempt in conformance with the program protocol, and (3) a minimum dose sample that also excluded respondents who did not adhere to at least one of the intervention elements. Observed case analyses and conservative analyses were conducted. In the observed case analysis of the randomized sample

Decision Support Systems for Research and Management in Advanced Life Support

Science.gov (United States)

Rodriquez, Luis F.

2004-01-01

Decision support systems have been implemented in many applications including strategic planning for battlefield scenarios, corporate decision making for business planning, production planning and control systems, and recommendation generators like those on Amazon.com(Registered TradeMark). Such tools are reviewed for developing a similar tool for NASA's ALS Program. DSS are considered concurrently with the development of the OPIS system, a database designed for chronicling of research and development in ALS. By utilizing the OPIS database, it is anticipated that decision support can be provided to increase the quality of decisions by ALS managers and researchers.

NASA Advanced Explorations Systems: Advancements in Life Support Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Shull, Sarah A.; Schneider, Walter F.

2016-01-01

The NASA Advanced Exploration Systems (AES) Life Support Systems (LSS) project strives to develop reliable, energy-efficient, and low-mass spacecraft systems to provide environmental control and life support systems (ECLSS) critical to enabling long duration human missions beyond low Earth orbit (LEO). Highly reliable, closed-loop life support systems are among the capabilities required for the longer duration human space exploration missions assessed by NASA's Habitability Architecture Team (HAT). The LSS project is focused on four areas: architecture and systems engineering for life support systems, environmental monitoring, air revitalization, and wastewater processing and water management. Starting with the international space station (ISS) LSS systems as a point of departure (where applicable), the mission of the LSS project is three-fold: 1. Address discrete LSS technology gaps 2. Improve the reliability of LSS systems 3. Advance LSS systems towards integrated testing on the ISS. This paper summarized the work being done in the four areas listed above to meet these objectives. Details will be given on the following focus areas: Systems Engineering and Architecture- With so many complex systems comprising life support in space, it is important to understand the overall system requirements to define life support system architectures for different space mission classes, ensure that all the components integrate well together and verify that testing is as representative of destination environments as possible. Environmental Monitoring- In an enclosed spacecraft that is constantly operating complex machinery for its own basic functionality as well as science experiments and technology demonstrations, it's possible for the environment to become compromised. While current environmental monitors aboard the ISS will alert crew members and mission control if there is an emergency, long-duration environmental monitoring cannot be done in-orbit as current methodologies

Operation and safety decision-making support expert system in NPP

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wei Yanhui; Su Desong; Chen Weihua; Zhang Jianbo

2014-01-01

The article first reviewed three operation support systems currently used in NPP: real-time information surveillance system, important equipment surveillance system and plant process control and monitoring system, then presents the structure and function of three expert support sub-systems (intelligent alarm monitoring system, computer-based operating procedure support system, safety information expert decision support system). Finally the article discussed the meaning of a kind of operation decision making support system. (authors)

Operator Support System for Pressurized Water Reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wei Renjie; Shen Shifei

1996-01-01

Operator Support System for Pressurized Water Reactor (OSSPWR) has been developed under the sponsorship of IAEA from August 1994. The project is being carried out by the Department of Engineering Physics, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China. The Design concepts of the operator support functions have been established. The prototype systems of OSSPWR has been developed as well. The primary goal of the project is to create an advanced operator support system by applying new technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) techniques, advanced communication technologies, etc. Recently, the advanced man-machine interface for nuclear power plant operators has been developed. It is connected to the modern computer systems and utilizes new high performance graphic displays. (author). 6 refs, 4 figs

Flavin-catalyzed redox tailoring reactions in natural product biosynthesis.

Science.gov (United States)

Teufel, Robin

2017-10-15

Natural products are distinct and often highly complex organic molecules that constitute not only an important drug source, but have also pushed the field of organic chemistry by providing intricate targets for total synthesis. How the astonishing structural diversity of natural products is enzymatically generated in biosynthetic pathways remains a challenging research area, which requires detailed and sophisticated approaches to elucidate the underlying catalytic mechanisms. Commonly, the diversification of precursor molecules into distinct natural products relies on the action of pathway-specific tailoring enzymes that catalyze, e.g., acylations, glycosylations, or redox reactions. This review highlights a selection of tailoring enzymes that employ riboflavin (vitamin B2)-derived cofactors (FAD and FMN) to facilitate unusual redox catalysis and steer the formation of complex natural product pharmacophores. Remarkably, several such recently reported flavin-dependent tailoring enzymes expand the classical paradigms of flavin biochemistry leading, e.g., to the discovery of the flavin-N5-oxide - a novel flavin redox state and oxygenating species. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Feasibility of tailoring of press formed thermoplastic composite parts

Science.gov (United States)

Sinke, J.

2018-05-01

The Tailor Made Blank concept is widely accepted in the production of sheet metal parts. By joining, adding and subtracting materials, and sometimes even applying different alloys, parts can be produced more efficiently by cost and/or weight, and new design options have been discovered. This paper is about the manufacture of press formed parts of Fibre Reinforced Thermoplastics and the evaluation whether the Tailoring concept, though adapted to the material behavior of FRTP, can be applied to these composites as well. From research, the first results and ideas are presented. One of the ideas is the multistep forming process, creating parts with thickness variations and combinations of fibre orientations that are usually not feasible using common press forming strategies. Another idea is the blending of different prepreg materials in one component. This might be useful in case of specific details, like for areas of mechanical fastening or to avoid carbon/metal contact, otherwise resulting in severe corrosion. In a brief overview, future perspectives of the potential of the Tailoring concept are presented.

Molecular tailoring approach for exploring structures, energetics and ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Administrator

Keywords. Molecular clusters; linear scaling methods; molecular tailoring approach (MTA); Hartree– ..... energy decomposition analysis also performed and which clearly ... through molecular dynamics simulation furnished by. Takeguchi,. 46.

Tailorable stimulated Brillouin scattering in nanoscale silicon waveguides.

Science.gov (United States)

Shin, Heedeuk; Qiu, Wenjun; Jarecki, Robert; Cox, Jonathan A; Olsson, Roy H; Starbuck, Andrew; Wang, Zheng; Rakich, Peter T

2013-01-01

Nanoscale modal confinement is known to radically enhance the effect of intrinsic Kerr and Raman nonlinearities within nanophotonic silicon waveguides. By contrast, stimulated Brillouin-scattering nonlinearities, which involve coherent coupling between guided photon and phonon modes, are stifled in conventional nanophotonics, preventing the realization of a host of Brillouin-based signal-processing technologies in silicon. Here we demonstrate stimulated Brillouin scattering in silicon waveguides, for the first time, through a new class of hybrid photonic-phononic waveguides. Tailorable travelling-wave forward-stimulated Brillouin scattering is realized-with over 1,000 times larger nonlinearity than reported in previous systems-yielding strong Brillouin coupling to phonons from 1 to 18 GHz. Experiments show that radiation pressures, produced by subwavelength modal confinement, yield enhancement of Brillouin nonlinearity beyond those of material nonlinearity alone. In addition, such enhanced and wideband coherent phonon emission paves the way towards the hybridization of silicon photonics, microelectromechanical systems and CMOS signal-processing technologies on chip.

Comparing motivational, self-regulatory and habitual processes in a computer-tailored physical activity intervention in hospital employees - protocol for the PATHS randomised controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Kwasnicka, Dominika; Vandelanotte, Corneel; Rebar, Amanda; Gardner, Benjamin; Short, Camille; Duncan, Mitch; Crook, Dawn; Hagger, Martin S

2017-05-26

Most people do not engage in sufficient physical activity to confer health benefits and to reduce risk of chronic disease. Healthcare professionals frequently provide guidance on physical activity, but often do not meet guideline levels of physical activity themselves. The main objective of this study is to develop and test the efficacy of a tailored intervention to increase healthcare professionals' physical activity participation and quality of life, and to reduce work-related stress and absenteeism. This is the first study to compare the additive effects of three forms of a tailored intervention using different techniques from behavioural theory, which differ according to their focus on motivational, self-regulatory and/or habitual processes. Healthcare professionals (N = 192) will be recruited from four hospitals in Perth, Western Australia, via email lists, leaflets, and posters to participate in the four group randomised controlled trial. Participants will be randomised to one of four conditions: (1) education only (non-tailored information only), (2) education plus intervention components to enhance motivation, (3) education plus components to enhance motivation and self-regulation, and (4) education plus components to enhance motivation, self-regulation and habit formation. All intervention groups will receive a computer-tailored intervention administered via a web-based platform and will receive supporting text-messages containing tailored information, prompts and feedback relevant to each condition. All outcomes will be assessed at baseline, and at 3-month follow-up. The primary outcome assessed in this study is physical activity measured using activity monitors. Secondary outcomes include: quality of life, stress, anxiety, sleep, and absenteeism. Website engagement, retention, preferences and intervention fidelity will also be evaluated as well as potential mediators and moderators of intervention effect. This is the first study to examine a tailored

‘Rapid Learning health care in oncology’ – An approach towards decision support systems enabling customised radiotherapy’

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lambin, Philippe; Roelofs, Erik; Reymen, Bart; Velazquez, Emmanuel Rios; Buijsen, Jeroen; Zegers, Catharina M.L.; Carvalho, Sara; Leijenaar, Ralph T.H.; Nalbantov, Georgi; Oberije, Cary; Scott Marshall, M.; Hoebers, Frank; Troost, Esther G.C.; Stiphout, Ruud G.P.M. van; Elmpt, Wouter van; Weijden, Trudy van der; Boersma, Liesbeth; Valentini, Vincenzo; Dekker, Andre

2013-01-01

Purpose: An overview of the Rapid Learning methodology, its results, and the potential impact on radiotherapy. Material and results: Rapid Learning methodology is divided into four phases. In the data phase, diverse data are collected about past patients, treatments used, and outcomes. Innovative information technologies that support semantic interoperability enable distributed learning and data sharing without additional burden on health care professionals and without the need for data to leave the hospital. In the knowledge phase, prediction models are developed for new data and treatment outcomes by applying machine learning methods to data. In the application phase, this knowledge is applied in clinical practice via novel decision support systems or via extensions of existing models such as Tumour Control Probability models. In the evaluation phase, the predictability of treatment outcomes allows the new knowledge to be evaluated by comparing predicted and actual outcomes. Conclusion: Personalised or tailored cancer therapy ensures not only that patients receive an optimal treatment, but also that the right resources are being used for the right patients. Rapid Learning approaches combined with evidence based medicine are expected to improve the predictability of outcome and radiotherapy is the ideal field to study the value of Rapid Learning. The next step will be to include patient preferences in the decision making

[Implementation of ontology-based clinical decision support system for management of interactions between antihypertensive drugs and diet].

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Jeong Eun; Kim, Hwa Sun; Chang, Min Jung; Hong, Hae Sook

2014-06-01

The influence of dietary composition on blood pressure is an important subject in healthcare. Interactions between antihypertensive drugs and diet (IBADD) is the most important factor in the management of hypertension. It is therefore essential to support healthcare providers' decision making role in active and continuous interaction control in hypertension management. The aim of this study was to implement an ontology-based clinical decision support system (CDSS) for IBADD management (IBADDM). We considered the concepts of antihypertensive drugs and foods, and focused on the interchangeability between the database and the CDSS when providing tailored information. An ontology-based CDSS for IBADDM was implemented in eight phases: (1) determining the domain and scope of ontology, (2) reviewing existing ontology, (3) extracting and defining the concepts, (4) assigning relationships between concepts, (5) creating a conceptual map with CmapTools, (6) selecting upper ontology, (7) formally representing the ontology with Protégé (ver.4.3), (8) implementing an ontology-based CDSS as a JAVA prototype application. We extracted 5,926 concepts, 15 properties, and formally represented them using Protégé. An ontology-based CDSS for IBADDM was implemented and the evaluation score was 4.60 out of 5. We endeavored to map functions of a CDSS and implement an ontology-based CDSS for IBADDM.

Operator support system for nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mori, Nobuyuki; Tai, Ichiro; Sudo, Osamu; Naito, Norio.

1987-01-01

The nuclear power generation in Japan maintains the high capacity factor, and its proportion taken in the total generated electric power exceeded 1/4, thus it has become the indispensable energy source. Recently moreover, the nuclear power plants which are harmonious with operators and easy to operate are demanded. For realizing this, the technical development such as the heightening of operation watching performance, the adoption of automation, and the improvement of various man-machine systems for reducing the burden of operators has been advanced by utilizing electronic techniques. In this paper, the trend of the man-machine systems in nuclear power plants, the positioning of operation support system, the support in the aspects of information, action and knowledge, the example of a new central control board, the operation support system using a computer, an operation support expert system and the problems hereafter are described. As the development of the man-machine system in nuclear power plants, the upgrading from a present new central control board system PODIA through A-PODIA, in which the operational function to deal with various phenomena arising in plants and safety control function are added, to 1-PODIA, in which knowledge engineering technology is adopted, is expected. (Kako, I.)

Support system for Neutron Activation Analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sasajima, Fumio; Ohtomo, Akitoshi; Sakurai, Fumio; Onizawa, Koji

1999-01-01

In the research reactor of JAERI, the Neutron Activation Analysis (NAA) has been utilized as a major part of an irradiation usage. To utilize NAA, research participants are always required to learn necessary technique. Therefore, we started to examine a support system that will enable to carry out INAA easily even by beginners. The system is composed of irradiation device, gamma-ray spectrometer and data analyzing instruments. The element concentration is calculated by using KAYZERO/SOLCOI software with the K 0 standardization method. In this paper, we review on a construction of this INAA support system in JRR-3M of JAERI. (author)

A highly attenuating and frequency tailorable annular hole phononic crystal for surface acoustic waves.

Science.gov (United States)

Ash, B J; Worsfold, S R; Vukusic, P; Nash, G R

2017-08-02

Surface acoustic wave (SAW) devices are widely used for signal processing, sensing and increasingly for lab-on-a-chip applications. Phononic crystals can control the propagation of SAW, analogous to photonic crystals, enabling components such as waveguides and cavities. Here we present an approach for the realisation of robust, tailorable SAW phononic crystals, based on annular holes patterned in a SAW substrate. Using simulations and experiments, we show that this geometry supports local resonances which create highly attenuating phononic bandgaps at frequencies with negligible coupling of SAWs into other modes, even for relatively shallow features. The enormous bandgap attenuation is up to an order-of-magnitude larger than that achieved with a pillar phononic crystal of the same size, enabling effective phononic crystals to be made up of smaller numbers of elements. This work transforms the ability to exploit phononic crystals for developing novel SAW device concepts, mirroring contemporary progress in photonic crystals.The control and manipulation of propagating sound waves on a surface has applications in on-chip signal processing and sensing. Here, Ash et al. deviate from standard designs and fabricate frequency tailorable phononic crystals with an order-of-magnitude increase in attenuation.

Effects of tailoring ingredients in auditory persuasive health messages on fruit and vegetable intake

OpenAIRE

Elbert, Sarah P.; Dijkstra, Arie; Rozema, Andrea

2017-01-01

Objective: Health messages can be tailored by applying different tailoring ingredients, among which personalisation, feedback and adaptation. This experiment investigated the separate effects of these tailoring ingredients on behaviour in auditory health persuasion. Furthermore, the moderating effect of self-efficacy was assessed.Design: The between-participants design consisted of four conditions. A generic health message served as a control condition; personalisation was applied using the r...

Tailoring a response to youth binge drinking in an Aboriginal Australian community: a grounded theory study.

Science.gov (United States)

McCalman, Janya; Tsey, Komla; Bainbridge, Roxanne; Shakeshaft, Anthony; Singleton, Michele; Doran, Christopher

2013-08-07

training. The community-based process undertaken by the research partnership to tailor the design, implementation and evaluation of the project was theorised as a model incorporating four overlapping stages of negotiating knowledges and meanings to tailor a community response. The theoretical model can be applied in spaces where local Aboriginal and scientific knowledges meet to support the tailored design, implementation and evaluation of other health improvement projects, particularly those that originate from Aboriginal communities themselves.

Tinker Tailor Robot Pi -- The Project

Science.gov (United States)

Bianchi, Lynne

2017-01-01

Tinker Tailor Robot Pi (TTRP) is an innovative curriculum development project, which started in September 2014. It involves in-service primary and secondary teachers, university academic engineers, business partners and pupils at Key Stages 1, 2 and 3 (ages 5-14). The focus of the work has been to explore how a pedagogy for primary engineering…

Direct synthesis of antimicrobial coatings based on tailored bi-elemental nanoparticles

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Giulio Benetti

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Ultrathin coatings based on bi-elemental nanoparticles (NPs are very promising to limit the surface-related spread of bacterial pathogens, particularly in nosocomial environments. However, tailoring the synthesis, composition, adhesion to substrate, and antimicrobial spectrum of the coating is an open challenge. Herein, we report on a radically new nanostructured coating, obtained by a one-step gas-phase deposition technique, and composed of bi-elemental Janus type Ag/Ti NPs. The NPs are characterized by a cluster-in-cluster mixing phase with metallic Ag nano-crystals embedded in amorphous TiO2 and present a promising antimicrobial activity including also multidrug resistant strains. We demonstrate the flexibility of the method to tune the embedded Ag nano-crystals dimension, the total relative composition of the coating, and the substrate type, opening the possibility of tailoring the dimension, composition, antimicrobial spectrum, and other physical/chemical properties of such multi-elemental systems. This work is expected to significantly spread the range of applications of NPs coatings, not only as an effective tool in the prevention of healthcare-associated infections but also in other technologically relevant fields like sensors or nano-/micro joining.

Direct synthesis of antimicrobial coatings based on tailored bi-elemental nanoparticles

Science.gov (United States)

Benetti, Giulio; Cavaliere, Emanuele; Canteri, Adalberto; Landini, Giulia; Rossolini, Gian Maria; Pallecchi, Lucia; Chiodi, Mirco; Van Bael, Margriet J.; Winckelmans, Naomi; Bals, Sara; Gavioli, Luca

2017-03-01

Ultrathin coatings based on bi-elemental nanoparticles (NPs) are very promising to limit the surface-related spread of bacterial pathogens, particularly in nosocomial environments. However, tailoring the synthesis, composition, adhesion to substrate, and antimicrobial spectrum of the coating is an open challenge. Herein, we report on a radically new nanostructured coating, obtained by a one-step gas-phase deposition technique, and composed of bi-elemental Janus type Ag/Ti NPs. The NPs are characterized by a cluster-in-cluster mixing phase with metallic Ag nano-crystals embedded in amorphous TiO2 and present a promising antimicrobial activity including also multidrug resistant strains. We demonstrate the flexibility of the method to tune the embedded Ag nano-crystals dimension, the total relative composition of the coating, and the substrate type, opening the possibility of tailoring the dimension, composition, antimicrobial spectrum, and other physical/chemical properties of such multi-elemental systems. This work is expected to significantly spread the range of applications of NPs coatings, not only as an effective tool in the prevention of healthcare-associated infections but also in other technologically relevant fields like sensors or nano-/micro joining.

Tailor-made blanks for the aircraft industry

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Zad Poor, A.A.

2010-01-01

Tailor-Made Blanks (TMBs) are hybrid assemblies made of sheet metals with different materials and/or thicknesses that are joined together prior to forming. Alternatively, a monolithic sheet can be machined to create required thickness variations (machined TMBs). The possibility of having several

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY SUPPORT SYSTEM FOR UKRAINIAN UNIVERSITIES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V. G. Sherstjuk

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Purpose. Developing the methodology for providing academic integrity in the university. The methodology is based on Web-oriented academic integrity support system, developed by the authors, which enters into the information system of learning process control. Academic integrity support system is aimed at maintaining academic integrity as a basic institutional value, which will help to reduce corruption, plagiarism and other types of academic dishonesty. Methodology. The methodology of problem to solve is based on the development of the information system of education process control with the integral elements of quality control. The information subsystem of academic integrity support is its basic part. Findings. The proposed information system allows us to fulfill the following levels: educational process monitoring; audit of internal processes, which is necessary for developing the effective quality control system; assessment of achievements of educational process participants; formalization of the interaction of educational process participants. The system is aimed at the development of new academic society based on the following principles: open access to the information, at which the access of wide audience to the information provides participation, forming the sense of responsibility and social control; transparency of the information, by which its relevance, quality, reliability are meant; responsibility of all members of educational process; measurability, at which any action in educational process should be measured; detail of describing the actions, results and processes; support, which is meant by automatic tools of the realization of the principles of open access to the information, transparency of the information, responsibility of all participants of educational process, measurability, detail, support. The practical realization of information system is based on the development of a common repository of university information. The

Decision support systems and expert systems for risk and safety analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baybutt, P.

1986-01-01

During the last 1-2 years, rapid developments have occurred in the development of decision support systems and expert systems to aid in decision making related to risk and safety of industrial plants. These activities are most noteworthy in the nuclear industry where numerous systems are under development with implementation often being made on personal computers. An overview of some of these developments is provided, and an example of one recently developed decision support system is given. This example deals with CADET, a system developed to aid the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission in making decisions related to the topical issue of source terms resulting from degraded core accidents in light water reactors. The paper concludes with some comments on the likely directions of future developments in decision support systems and expert systems to aid in the management of risk and safety in industrial plants. (author)

The importance of building trust and tailoring interactions when meeting older adults' health literacy needs.

Science.gov (United States)

Brooks, Charlotte; Ballinger, Claire; Nutbeam, Don; Adams, Jo

2017-11-01

Health literacy is the ability to access, understand and use health information. This study qualitatively explored the views and experiences of older adults with varying health literacy levels who had attended a falls clinic on their overall experience of the falls clinic, access to the service and provider-patient interaction. Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted with nine older adults using a falls clinic in England. Health literacy was assessed using the REALM and NVS-UK. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim and interrogated using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA). Two superordinate themes emerged from the analysis: The importance of trust and relationship building to achieve effective communication with older adults; and the importance of tailoring education and healthcare to older adults' individual health literacy needs and preferences. The findings corroborate previous research emphasising the importance of face-to-face communication in responding to older adults' individual health literacy needs. Building trust in the relationship and tailoring communication to older adults' individual attributes and preferred learning styles is essential. Healthcare practitioners and managers should consider how service organisation and communication methods can enhance positive and effective relationships with patients. Improved training could support healthcare providers in meeting patients' personal communication needs. Implications for Rehabilitation Rehabilitation professionals should be aware of their patients' individual health literacy needs and communication/learning preferences. It is important to build relationships and trust with older adults attending rehabilitation services. Further training for rehabilitation professionals could support them in meeting patients' personal communication needs.

Nutritional support of the elderly cancer patient: the role of the nurse.

Science.gov (United States)

Hopkinson, Jane B

2015-04-01

Cancer in the geriatric population is a growing problem. Malnutrition is common in cancer. A number of factors increase the risk for malnutrition in older people with cancer, including chronic comorbid conditions and normal physiological changes of aging. Nurses have an important role in the nutritional support of older cancer patients. To contribute to the improvement of nutritional support of these patients, nurses need appropriate training to be able to identify risk for malnutrition and offer a range of interventions tailored to individual need. Factors to consider in tailoring interventions include disease status, cancer site, cancer treatment, comorbidity, physiological age, method of facilitating dietary change, and family support. This article identifies ways in which nurses can contribute to the nutritional support of older cancer patients and thus help mitigate the effects of malnutrition. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Selecting effective persuasive strategies in behavior change support systems: Third International Workshop on Behavior Change Support Systems (BCSS 2015)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kelders, Saskia Marion; Kulyk, Olga Anatoliyivna; van Gemert-Pijnen, Julia E.W.C.; Oinas-Kukkonen, Harri; Kelders, Saskia; Kulyk, Olga; van Gemert-Pijnen, Lisette; Oinas-Kukkonen, Harri

2015-01-01

The Third International Workshop on Behavior Change Support Systems provides a place to discuss recent advances in BCSS research. The selected papers show that research into behavior change support systems is expanding: not only by trying to reach more and other people, but also by expanding the

Tailored reflectors for illumination.

Science.gov (United States)

Jenkins, D; Winston, R

1996-04-01

We report on tailored reflector design methods that allow the placement of general illumination patterns onto a target plane. The use of a new integral design method based on the edge-ray principle of nonimaging optics gives much more compact reflector shapes by eliminating the need for a gap between the source and the reflector profile. In addition, the reflectivity of the reflector is incorporated as a design parameter. We show the performance of design for constant irradiance on a distant plane, and we show how a leading-edge-ray method may be used to achieve general illumination patterns on nearby targets.

'EPRI tailored collaboration 2, Crystal River cost and volume reduction program'

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Genoa, P.H.

1995-01-01

During the fall of 1993. Florida Power Corporation joined the EPRI tailored collaboration on the low-level radioactive waste cost and volume reduction. In conjunction with an existing Radwaste Task Force, the EPRI team reviewed past and current waste management practices and developed a prioritized list of opportunities for improvement. In the first quarter of 1994, these opportunities were converted into Action Plans with responsibilities and due dates assigned to support a 60-day refueling outage beginning on April 7, 1994. The Action Plans focussed on: (1) Visible management support in the form of specific plant, department, and worker level radwaste reduction goals. (2) Heightened worker awareness in the form of training (formal and informal), signs, bulletins, and a radwaste awareness video. (3) Material changes from disposable to recyclables, non-incinerables to incinerables, liquid waste processing media replacements and filter use criteria. (4) Work practice changes to reduce valve leaks, reduce contaminated areas, reduce entries to contaminated areas, further segregation of waste streams including 'green is clean' wastes

Manufacturing of tailored tubes with a process integrated heat treatment

Science.gov (United States)

Hordych, Illia; Boiarkin, Viacheslav; Rodman, Dmytro; Nürnberger, Florian

2017-10-01

The usage of work-pieces with tailored properties allows for reducing costs and materials. One example are tailored tubes that can be used as end parts e.g. in the automotive industry or in domestic applications as well as semi-finished products for subsequent controlled deformation processes. An innovative technology to manufacture tubes is roll forming with a subsequent inductive heating and adapted quenching to obtain tailored properties in the longitudinal direction. This processing offers a great potential for the production of tubes with a wide range of properties, although this novel approach still requires a suited process design. Based on experimental data, a process simulation is being developed. The simulation shall be suitable for a virtual design of the tubes and allows for gaining a deeper understanding of the required processing. The model proposed shall predict microstructural and mechanical tube properties by considering process parameters, different geometries, batch-related influences etc. A validation is carried out using experimental data of tubes manufactured from various steel grades.

Aeroelastic Tailoring of Transport Aircraft Wings: State-of-the-Art and Potential Enabling Technologies

Science.gov (United States)

Jutte, Christine; Stanford, Bret K.

2014-01-01

This paper provides a brief overview of the state-of-the-art for aeroelastic tailoring of subsonic transport aircraft and offers additional resources on related research efforts. Emphasis is placed on aircraft having straight or aft swept wings. The literature covers computational synthesis tools developed for aeroelastic tailoring and numerous design studies focused on discovering new methods for passive aeroelastic control. Several new structural and material technologies are presented as potential enablers of aeroelastic tailoring, including selectively reinforced materials, functionally graded materials, fiber tow steered composite laminates, and various nonconventional structural designs. In addition, smart materials and structures whose properties or configurations change in response to external stimuli are presented as potential active approaches to aeroelastic tailoring.

Monitoring support system for nuclear power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Higashikawa, Yuichi; Kubota, Rhuji; Tanaka, Keiji; Takano, Yoshiyuki

1996-01-01

The nuclear power plants in Japan reach to 49 plants and supply 41.19 million kW in their installed capacities, which is equal to about 31% of total electric power generation and has occupied an important situation as a stable energy supplying source. As an aim to keeping safe operation and working rate of the power plants, various monitoring support systems using computer technology, optical information technology and robot technology each advanced rapidly in recent year have been developed to apply to the actual plants for a plant state monitoring system of operators in normal operation. Furthermore, introduction of the emergent support system supposed on accidental formation of abnormal state of the power plants is also investigated. In this paper, as a monitoring system in the recent nuclear power plants, design of control panel of recent central control room, introduction to its actual plant and monitoring support system in development were described in viewpoints of improvement of human interface, upgrade of sensor and signal processing techniques, and promotion of information service technique. And, trend of research and development of portable miniature detector and emergent monitoring support system are also introduced in a viewpoint of labor saving and upgrade of the operating field. (G.K.)

Development of support system for nuclear power plant piping

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Horino, Satoshi

1987-01-01

Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. has advanced the development of Integrated Nuclear Plant Piping System (INUPPS) for nuclear power plants since 1980, and continued its improvement up to now. This time as its component, a piping support system (PISUP) has been developed. The piping support system deals with the structures such as piping supports and the stands for maintenance and inspection, and as for standard supporting structures, it builds up automatically the structures including the selection of optimum members by utilizing the standard patterns in cooperation with the piping design system including piping stress analysis. As for the supporting structures deviating from the standard, by amending a part of the standard patterns in dialogue from, structures can be built up. By using the data produced in this way, this system draws up consistently a design book, production management data and so on. From the viewpoint of safety, particular consideration is given to the aseismatic capability of nuclear power plants, and piping is fundamentally designed regidly to avoid resonance. It is necessary to make piping supports so as to have sufficient strength and rigidity. The features of the design of piping supports for nuclear power plant, the basic concept of piping support system, the constitution of the software and hardware, the standard patterns and the structural patterns of piping support system and so on are described. (Kako, I.)

A Support Database System for Integrated System Health Management (ISHM)

Science.gov (United States)

Schmalzel, John; Figueroa, Jorge F.; Turowski, Mark; Morris, John

2007-01-01

The development, deployment, operation and maintenance of Integrated Systems Health Management (ISHM) applications require the storage and processing of tremendous amounts of low-level data. This data must be shared in a secure and cost-effective manner between developers, and processed within several heterogeneous architectures. Modern database technology allows this data to be organized efficiently, while ensuring the integrity and security of the data. The extensibility and interoperability of the current database technologies also allows for the creation of an associated support database system. A support database system provides additional capabilities by building applications on top of the database structure. These applications can then be used to support the various technologies in an ISHM architecture. This presentation and paper propose a detailed structure and application description for a support database system, called the Health Assessment Database System (HADS). The HADS provides a shared context for organizing and distributing data as well as a definition of the applications that provide the required data-driven support to ISHM. This approach provides another powerful tool for ISHM developers, while also enabling novel functionality. This functionality includes: automated firmware updating and deployment, algorithm development assistance and electronic datasheet generation. The architecture for the HADS has been developed as part of the ISHM toolset at Stennis Space Center for rocket engine testing. A detailed implementation has begun for the Methane Thruster Testbed Project (MTTP) in order to assist in developing health assessment and anomaly detection algorithms for ISHM. The structure of this implementation is shown in Figure 1. The database structure consists of three primary components: the system hierarchy model, the historical data archive and the firmware codebase. The system hierarchy model replicates the physical relationships between

Use of electronic sales data to tailor nutrition education resources for an ethnically diverse population.

Science.gov (United States)

Eyles, H; Rodgers, A; Ni Mhurchu, C

2010-02-01

Nutrition education may be most effective when personally tailored. Individualised electronic supermarket sales data offer opportunities to tailor nutrition education using shopper's usual food purchases. The present study aimed to use individualised electronic supermarket sales data to tailor nutrition resources for an ethnically diverse population in a large supermarket intervention trial in New Zealand. Culturally appropriate nutrition education resources (i.e. messages and shopping lists) were developed with the target population (through two sets of focus groups) and ethnic researchers. A nutrient database of supermarket products was developed using retrospective sales data and linked to participant sales to allow tailoring by usual food purchases. Modified Heart Foundation Tick criteria were used to identify 'healthier' products in the database suitable for promotion in the resources. Rules were developed to create a monthly report listing the tailored and culturally targeted messages to be sent to each participant, and to produce automated, tailored shopping lists. Culturally targeted nutrition messages (n = 864) and shopping lists (n = 3 formats) were developed. The food and nutrient database (n = 3000 top-selling products) was created using 12 months of retrospective sales data, and comprised 60%'healthier' products. Three months of baseline sales data were used to determine usual food purchases. Tailored resources were successfully mailed to 123 Māori, 52 Pacific and 346 non-Māori non-Pacific participants over the 6-month trial intervention period. Electronic supermarket sales data can be used to tailor nutrition education resources for a large number of ethnically diverse supermarket shoppers.

Individually tailored internet-based cognitive behaviour therapy for older adults with anxiety and depression: a randomised controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Silfvernagel, Kristin; Westlinder, Anna; Andersson, Stina; Bergman, Kajsa; Diaz Hernandez, Rosario; Fallhagen, Line; Lundqvist, Ida; Masri, Nicole; Viberg, Linda; Forsberg, Marie-Louise; Lind, Maria; Berger, Thomas; Carlbring, Per; Andersson, Gerhard

2018-07-01

Mixed anxiety and depression is common among older adults. The aim of the study was to compare the effects of an eight-week-long tailored internet-supported cognitive behaviour therapy (ICBT) programme and to compare against the provision of weekly general support. A second aim was to investigate if pre-treatment cognitive flexibility and self-reported cognitive problems would predict outcome. We included 66 older adults (aged over 60 years) with mixed anxiety/depression following media recruitment and randomised them into treatment and control groups. We also included a one-year follow-up. As a measure of executive function, we used the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (perseverative errors) and the Cognitive Failures Questionnaire during the pre-treatment phase. Results showed a moderate between-group effect on the main outcome measure, the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) (d= .50), favouring the treatment group. Nearly half (45.5%) of that group were classified as responders. One person (3%) in the treatment group deteriorated. There were significant correlations between perseverative errors and outcome (on the BAI r = -.45), but not among self-reported cognitive function. We conclude that guided, tailored ICBT may be effective for some older adults and that the role of cognitive function needs to be investigated further.

Hand cumulative trauma disorders in Nigerian custom tailors: the need for redesign of manual scissors.

Science.gov (United States)

Adeleye, Adedoyin Abiodun; Akanbi, Olusegun Gabriel

2015-01-01

Cutting scissors are important working tools for Nigerian custom tailors (CTs) but its usage apparently does not meet the ergonomics need of these artisans. A survey was carried out amongst CTs using questionnaires to obtain their background social-occupational demographics and observation methods to study their work performance, use of scissors and any cumulative trauma disorder (CTD) in their hands. Thicknesses of various fabrics were measured and comparison between Western world's custom tailoring job and the Nigerian type was done. The results showed some CTD risk factors with finger contusions on the 71 CTs evaluated. The right-hand contusions were traced to the constant usage of unpadded manual scissors with ungloved hands. Disparity between Western and Nigerian tailoring practice may account for the high occurrence of disorders in Nigerian CTs. Since hand dimensions are crucial in the design of hand tools, it is therefore concluded that hand anthropometry of Nigerian CTs and soft padding of manual scissors may mitigate CTD burdens on CTs' hands. Cumulative trauma disorders on the hands of low-income Nigerian CTs needed investigation. This was done via self-assessment and observational methods of the artisans’ work system. Frequent usage of unpadded manual scissors with un-gloved hands cause and exacerbate the problem. Hand anthropometry of users is crucial in scissors manufacturing.

Tailoring endocrine treatment for early breast cancer

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Fontein, Duveken Berthe Yvonne

2014-01-01

This thesis describes several important aspects of adjuvant endocrine therapy for postmenopausal women with endocrine-sensitive, early-stage breast cancer. In our ongoing efforts to tailor treatment so as to provide the best possible care to each of our patients, we studied the influence of various

Biological fabrication of cellulose fibers with tailored properties

Science.gov (United States)

Natalio, Filipe; Fuchs, Regina; Cohen, Sidney R.; Leitus, Gregory; Fritz-Popovski, Gerhard; Paris, Oskar; Kappl, Michael; Butt, Hans-Jürgen

2017-09-01

Cotton is a promising basis for wearable smart textiles. Current approaches that rely on fiber coatings suffer from function loss during wear. We present an approach that allows biological incorporation of exogenous molecules into cotton fibers to tailor the material’s functionality. In vitro model cultures of upland cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) are incubated with 6-carboxyfluorescein-glucose and dysprosium-1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-1,4,7,10-tetraacetic acid-glucose, where the glucose moiety acts as a carrier capable of traveling from the vascular connection to the outermost cell layer of the ovule epidermis, becoming incorporated into the cellulose fibers. This yields fibers with unnatural properties such as fluorescence or magnetism. Combining biological systems with the appropriate molecular design offers numerous possibilities to grow functional composite materials and implements a material-farming concept.

30 CFR 75.817 - Cable handling and support systems.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... High-Voltage Longwalls § 75.817 Cable handling and support systems. Longwall mining equipment must be provided with cable-handling and support systems that are constructed, installed and maintained to minimize... 30 Mineral Resources 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Cable handling and support systems. 75.817...

Decision support system for Wamakersvallei Winery

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Van Der Merwe, A

2007-09-01

Full Text Available The goal of the study is to lend decision support to management a a wine cellar in three areas of expertise, with Wamakersvallei Winery serving as a special case study. This decision support system is to be delivered in the form of Excel spreadsheet...

Technical knowledge and skills development in the informal sector in Kenya: The case of custom tailors

Science.gov (United States)

Apunda, Edwinah Amondi; de Klerk, Helena M.; Ogina, Teresa

2017-06-01

Custom tailors working in the informal sector in Nairobi, Kenya, mainly acquire technical skills through undertaking traditional apprenticeships (TAs). However, most of these tailors are semi-skilled, produce low-quality products and are often poorer than their formally trained counterparts. This qualitative case study explores the aspects of technical skills and knowledge which tailoring apprentices develop, and the factors which influence these outcomes. The findings show that apprentices do acquire basic technical skills for immediate application to ongoing tailoring activities (such as how to take body measurements, draft patterns, and cut, sew and finish constructed garments). However, apprentices do not acquire the technical knowledge that underpins the trade. Most master tailors who have completed TAs lack technical knowledge and have no access to technical skills upgrading. This perpetuates the cycle of basic and limited technical skills transfer to apprentices, poor performance and poverty among tailors. Both apprentices and master tailors expressed concern over knowledge limitations in TAs and a need to access further training to improve skills and acquire knowledge of the trade. The authors of this article argue that, technically and pedagogically, skilled master tailors are critical to improving training quality. Complementary training in theoretical knowledge is also important in improving apprentices' technical skills and understanding of the trade. Inclusion of TAs in government policy may help ensure sustainable improvement of skills.

The Logistics Management Decision Support System (LMDSS) : an effective tool to reduce life cycle support costs of aviation systems

OpenAIRE

Moore, Ellen E.; Snyder, Carolynn M.

1998-01-01

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited This thesis assesses the capability of the Logistics Management Decision Support System (LMDSS) to meet the information needs of Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) logistics managers based on surveys of logistics managers and interviews with LMDSS program representatives. The LMDSS is being introduced as a tool to facilitate action by NAVAIR logistics managers to reduce the life cycle support costs of aviation systems while protecting ...

Radwaste Decision Support System

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Westrom, G.; Vance, J.N.; Gelhaus, F.E.

1989-01-01

The purpose of the Radwaste Decision Support System (RDSS) is to provide expert advice, analysis results and instructional material relative to the treatment, handling, transport and disposal of low-level radioactive waste produced in nuclear power plants. This functional specification addresses the following topics: Functions of the RDSS, Relationships and interfaces between the function, Development of the decisions and logic tree structures embodied in waste management, Elements of the database and the characteristics required to support the decision-making process, Specific User requirements for the RDSS, Development of the user interface, Basic software architecture, and Concepts for the RDSS usage including updating and maintenance

Clinical Information Support System (CISS)

Data.gov (United States)

Department of Veterans Affairs — Clinical Information Support System (CISS) is a web-based portal application that provides a framework of services for the VA enterprise and supplies an integration...

SAP R/3 An IT-plague or the answer to the Tailors dream?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Koch, Christian

1999-01-01

The IT-market of ERP-systems have significantly changed over the last 10 years. At least in Denmark manufacturing enterprises used to close "partner like" collaboration with their IT-supplier, now face mass produced packaged software. This challenges the skills of technology managers, can they cope...... with the IT-plague, do they suffer from the "power of default",i.e. the use of standard settings of parameters?- or can they tailor anything to anybody?...

Highly tailorable thiol-ene based emulsion-templated monoliths

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lafleur, J. P.; Kutter, J. P.

2014-01-01

The attractive surface properties of thiol-ene polymers combined with their ease of processing make them ideal substrates in many bioanalytical applications. We report the synthesis of highly tailorable emulsion-templated porous polymers and beads in microfluidic devices based on off-stoichiometr......The attractive surface properties of thiol-ene polymers combined with their ease of processing make them ideal substrates in many bioanalytical applications. We report the synthesis of highly tailorable emulsion-templated porous polymers and beads in microfluidic devices based on off......-stoichiometry thiolene chemistry. The method allows monolith synthesis and anchoring inside thiol-ene microchannels in a single step. Variations in the monomer stoichiometric ratios and/or amount of porogen used allow for the creation of extremely varied polymer morphologies, from foam-like materials to dense networks...

Operator decision support system for sodium loop

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Kwang Hyeang; Park, Kyu Ho; Kim, Tak Kon; Jo, Choong Ho; Seong, Kyeong A; Lee, Keon Myeong; Kim, Yeong Dal; Kim, Chang Beom; Kim, Jong Kyu; Jo, Hee Chang; Lee, Ji Hyeong; Jeong, Yoon Soo; Chio, Jong Hyeong; Jeong, Bong Joon; Hong, Joon Seong; Kim, Bong Wan; Seong, Byeong Hak [Korea Advanced Institute Science and Technology, Taejon (Korea, Republic of)

1994-07-01

The objective of this study is to develop an operator decision support system by computerizing the sodium circuit. This study developed graphical display interface for the control panel which provides the safety control of equipment, the recognition of experimental process states and sodium circuit states. In this study, basic work to develop an operator decision support real-time expert system for sodium loop was carried out. Simplification of control commands and effective operation of various real-time data and signals by equipment code standardization are studied. The cost ineffectiveness of the single processor structure provides the ground for the development of cost effective parallel processing system. The important tasks of this study are (1) design and implementation of control state surveillance panel of sodium loop, (2) requirement analysis of operator support real-time expert system for sodium loop, (3) design of standard code rule for operating equipment and research on the cost effective all purpose parallel processing system and (4) requirement analysis of expert system and design of control state variables and user interface for experimental process. 10 refs., 36 figs., 20 tabs.

Systems analysis support to the waste management technology center

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rivera, A.L.; Osborne-Lee, I.W.; DePaoli, S.M.

1988-01-01

This paper describes a systems analysis concept being developed in support of waste management planning and analysis activities for Martin Marietta Energy Systems, Inc. (Energy Systems), sites. This integrated systems model serves as a focus for the accumulation and documentation of technical and economic information from current waste management practices, improved operations projects, remedial actions, and new system development activities. The approach is generic and could be applied to a larger group of sites. This integrated model is a source of technical support to waste management groups in the Energy Systems complex for integrated waste management planning and related technology assessment activities. This problem-solving methodology for low-level waste (LLW) management is being developed through the Waste Management Technology Center (WMTC) for the Low-Level Waste Disposal, Development, and Demonstration (LLWDDD) Program. In support of long-range planning activities, this capability will include the development of management support tools such as specialized systems models, data bases, and information systems. These management support tools will provide continuing support in the identification and definition of technical and economic uncertainties to be addressed by technology demonstration programs. Technical planning activities and current efforts in the development of this system analysis capability for the LLWDDD Program are presented in this paper

Automatic seismic support design of piping system by an object oriented expert system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nakatogawa, T.; Takayama, Y.; Hayashi, Y.; Fukuda, T.; Yamamoto, Y.; Haruna, T.

1990-01-01

The seismic support design of piping systems of nuclear power plants requires many experienced engineers and plenty of man-hours, because the seismic design conditions are very severe, the bulk volume of the piping systems is hyge and the design procedures are very complicated. Therefore we have developed a piping seismic design expert system, which utilizes the piping design data base of a 3 dimensional CAD system and automatically determines the piping support locations and support styles. The data base of this system contains the maximum allowable seismic support span lengths for straight piping and the span length reduction factors for bends, branches, concentrated masses in the piping, and so forth. The system automatically produces the support design according to the design knowledge extracted and collected from expert design engineers, and using design information such as piping specifications which give diameters and thickness and piping geometric configurations. The automatic seismic support design provided by this expert system achieves in the reduction of design man-hours, improvement of design quality, verification of design result, optimization of support locations and prevention of input duplication. In the development of this system, we had to derive the design logic from expert design engineers and this could not be simply expressed descriptively. Also we had to make programs for different kinds of design knowledge. For these reasons we adopted the object oriented programming paradigm (Smalltalk-80) which is suitable for combining programs and carrying out the design work

Information Systems to Support Surveillance for Malaria Elimination

Science.gov (United States)

Ohrt, Colin; Roberts, Kathryn W.; Sturrock, Hugh J. W.; Wegbreit, Jennifer; Lee, Bruce Y.; Gosling, Roly D.

2015-01-01

Robust and responsive surveillance systems are critical for malaria elimination. The ideal information system that supports malaria elimination includes: rapid and complete case reporting, incorporation of related data, such as census or health survey information, central data storage and management, automated and expert data analysis, and customized outputs and feedback that lead to timely and targeted responses. Spatial information enhances such a system, ensuring cases are tracked and mapped over time. Data sharing and coordination across borders are vital and new technologies can improve data speed, accuracy, and quality. Parts of this ideal information system exist and are in use, but have yet to be linked together coherently. Malaria elimination programs should support the implementation and refinement of information systems to support surveillance and response and ensure political and financial commitment to maintain the systems and the human resources needed to run them. National malaria programs should strive to improve the access and utility of these information systems and establish cross-border data sharing mechanisms through the use of standard indicators for malaria surveillance. Ultimately, investment in the information technologies that support a timely and targeted surveillance and response system is essential for malaria elimination. PMID:26013378

Compactly Supported Curvelet-Type Systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rasmussen, Kenneth Niemann; Nielsen, Morten

2012-01-01

We study a flexible method for constructing curvelet-type frames. These curvelet-type systems have the same sparse representation properties as curvelets for appropriate classes of smooth functions, and the flexibility of the method allows us to give a constructive description of how to construct...... curvelet-type systems with a prescribed nature such as compact support in direct space. The method consists of using the machinery of almost diagonal matrices to show that a system of curvelet molecules which is sufficiently close to curvelets constitutes a frame for curvelet-type spaces. Such a system...

Development of refueling support system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nishimura, Hiroshi; Hayashi, Shoichi; Sano, Kazuya; Hochin, Koji; Iguchi, Yukihiro

1992-01-01

The refueling of Fugen Nuclear Power Station requires correct management of fuels, etc. And empirical knowledge is necessary for efficient planning and refueling. Fugen developed refueling support system and put it into practical operation. The system features a network of refueling equipment and AI rules aquired from operators knowledge. The system helps make an optimized plan, displays step-by-step guidance and prints out lists of fuel locations and movements. The system reduced the labor of the operators, optimized the management and improved the reliability of the refueling. (author)

SAMAC program: the computer support for a stand-alone monitoring and control system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Logg, C.A.

1979-12-01

The high energy physics experiments at SLAC require constant monitoring and control of the numerous components contained in the particle detection apparatus. This paper describes a basic hardware configuration and operating system which have been designed and implemented to satisfy the monitoring and control requirements of the many different setups used in these high energy physics experiments. It is based on the LSI-11 microprocessor with up to one million words of RAM and EPROM which are interchangeably mappable into the normal LSI-11 RAM/EPROM address space of 28K words. The entire system is modular in hardware and software so that it can easily be tailored to an individual experiment. The human interface is such that little training is required for effective use of the system

Differences in Health and Social Support between Homeless Men and Women Entering Permanent Supportive Housing

Science.gov (United States)

Winetrobe, Hailey; Wenzel, Suzanne; Rhoades, Harmony; Henwood, Benjamin; Rice, Eric; Harris, Taylor

2017-01-01

Background Permanent supportive housing (PSH) is the leading intervention to end chronic homelessness. Little is known, however, about gender differences, including potential disparities in physical and mental health and social support, that might inform services available through PSH. Methods 421 homeless adults, at least 39 years old, English- or Spanish-speaking, who were moving into PSH through 26 different agencies in the Los Angeles area participated. Results Compared to men entering PSH, homeless women (28% of the sample) were younger (phomeless adults moving into PSH. PSH cannot be a one-size-fits-all approach. Supportive services within housing should be tailored based on gender and other individual needs. PMID:28153741

Why are Tailored Messages More Effective? A Multiple Mediation Analysis of a Breast Cancer Screening Intervention.

Science.gov (United States)

Jensen, Jakob D; King, Andy J; Carcioppolo, Nicholas; Davis, LaShara

2012-10-01

Past research has found that tailoring increases the persuasive effectiveness of a message. However, the observed effect has been small and the explanatory mechanism remains unknown. To address these shortcomings, a tailoring software program was created that personalized breast cancer screening pamphlets according to risk, health belief model constructs, and visual preference. Women aged 40 and older ( N = 119) participated in a 2 (tailored vs. stock message) × 2 (charts/graphs vs. illustrated visuals) × 3 (nested replications of the visuals) experiment. Participants provided with tailored illustrated pamphlets expressed greater breast cancer screening intentions than those provided with other pamphlets. In a test of 10 different mediators, perceived message relevance was found to fully mediate the tailoring × visual interaction.

Use of the decision support system RECASS NT (Radio Ecological Analysis Support System) for anti terrorism actions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bulgakov, V.G.; Gariyants, A.M.; Kosykh, V.S.; Shershakov, V.M.

2006-01-01

Decision support system RECASS NT (Radio Ecological Analysis Support System) was developed and is still enhancing in Federal Service Roshydromet for providing on-line estimates and prognoses of radiation and chemical situation in the event of an emergency, including acts of terrorism, as well as to estimate transboundary pollutants transport. RECASS NT has been installed at all ten NPPs of the Russian Federation, in Crisis Centers of Roshydromet, concern Rosenergoatom and Minatom, at plants for destroying chemical weapons. The paper describes the structure of RECASS NT system and discuss its possible application in case of an emergency on examples of using the system during radiation emergency response exercises at NPPs. RECASS NT can be used for developing recommendations regarding time when anti terrorism operations are better to be started with a view to minimize damage

Toward the Modularization of Decision Support Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Raskin, R. G.

2009-12-01

Decision support systems are typically developed entirely from scratch without the use of modular components. This “stovepiped” approach is inefficient and costly because it prevents a developer from leveraging the data, models, tools, and services of other developers. Even when a decision support component is made available, it is difficult to know what problem it solves, how it relates to other components, or even that the component exists, The Spatial Decision Support (SDS) Consortium was formed in 2008 to organize the body of knowledge in SDS within a common portal. The portal identifies the canonical steps in the decision process and enables decision support components to be registered, categorized, and searched. This presentation describes how a decision support system can be assembled from modular models, data, tools and services, based on the needs of the Earth science application.

Integration of a satellite ground support system based on analysis of the satellite ground support domain

Science.gov (United States)

Pendley, R. D.; Scheidker, E. J.; Levitt, D. S.; Myers, C. R.; Werking, R. D.

1994-11-01

This analysis defines a complete set of ground support functions based on those practiced in real space flight operations during the on-orbit phase of a mission. These functions are mapped against ground support functions currently in use by NASA and DOD. Software components to provide these functions can be hosted on RISC-based work stations and integrated to provide a modular, integrated ground support system. Such modular systems can be configured to provide as much ground support functionality as desired. This approach to ground systems has been widely proposed and prototyped both by government institutions and commercial vendors. The combined set of ground support functions we describe can be used as a standard to evaluate candidate ground systems. This approach has also been used to develop a prototype of a modular, loosely-integrated ground support system, which is discussed briefly. A crucial benefit to a potential user is that all the components are flight-qualified, thus giving high confidence in their accuracy and reliability.

The Challenges of the "Software Support for Industrial Controls" Contract

CERN Document Server

Ninin, P

2000-01-01

ST division is currently specifying a 'Software Support for Industrial Controls' contract. The application of this contract and its success will require several changes in our habits for specifying, designing, and maintaining control systems. This paper summarizes some key concepts which should be respected in order to obtain maximum benefits from the future contract and to optimize the software activities in the division. The contract concerns the maintenance and development of the monitoring and control systems used for supervising CERN's technical infrastructure (electrical distribution, cooling water, air conditioning, safety, and access control). The systems concerned consist of computer and communication hardware and software, tailored to provide specific functionalities for the remote operation, command, and monitoring of equipment. All these systems use commercially available software and hardware such as SCADA, PLCs and associated drivers, controllers, fieldbuses, and networks. It is intended to cont...

eHealth Literacy and Intervention Tailoring Impacts the Acceptability of a HIV/STI Testing Intervention and Sexual Decision Making Among Young Gay and Bisexual Men.

Science.gov (United States)

Horvath, Keith J; Bauermeister, José A

2017-02-01

We assessed whether young men who have sex with men's acceptability with the online Get Connected! intervention and subsequent sexual health decision making were influenced by their baseline eHealth literacy (high vs. low competency) and intervention tailoring (tailored or nontailored intervention condition). Compared to the high eHealth literacy/tailored intervention group: (1) those in the low eHealth literacy/tailored intervention condition and participants in the nontailored intervention condition (regardless of eHealth literacy score) reported lower intervention information quality scores; and (2) those in the low eHealth literacy/nontailored intervention group reported lower intervention system quality scores and that the intervention had less influence on their sexual health decision making. Future similar intervention research should consider how eHealth literacy might influence participants' abilities to navigate intervention content and integrate it into their sexual decision making.

Tailoring electronic properties of multilayer phosphorene by siliconization

Science.gov (United States)

Malyi, Oleksandr I.; Sopiha, Kostiantyn V.; Radchenko, Ihor; Wu, Ping; Persson, Clas

Controlling a thickness dependence of electronic properties for two-dimensional (2d) materials is among primary goals for their large-scale applications. Herein, employing a first-principles computational approach, we predict that Si interaction with multilayer phosphorene (2d-P) can result in the formation of highly stable 2d-SiP and 2d-SiP$_2$ compounds with a weak interlayer interaction. Our analysis demonstrates that these systems are semiconductors with band gap energies that can be governed by varying the thickness and stacking order. Specifically, siliconization of phosphorene allows to design 2d-SiP$_x$ materials with significantly weaker thickness dependence of electronic properties than that in 2d-P and to develop ways for their tailoring. We also reveal the spatial dependence of electronic properties for 2d-SiP$_x$ highlighting difference in effective band gaps for different layers. Particularly, our results show that central layers in the multilayer 2d systems determine overall electronic properties, while the role of the outermost layers is noticeably smaller.

Comparing motivational, self-regulatory and habitual processes in a computer-tailored physical activity intervention in hospital employees - protocol for the PATHS randomised controlled trial

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dominika Kwasnicka

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Most people do not engage in sufficient physical activity to confer health benefits and to reduce risk of chronic disease. Healthcare professionals frequently provide guidance on physical activity, but often do not meet guideline levels of physical activity themselves. The main objective of this study is to develop and test the efficacy of a tailored intervention to increase healthcare professionals’ physical activity participation and quality of life, and to reduce work-related stress and absenteeism. This is the first study to compare the additive effects of three forms of a tailored intervention using different techniques from behavioural theory, which differ according to their focus on motivational, self-regulatory and/or habitual processes. Methods/Design Healthcare professionals (N = 192 will be recruited from four hospitals in Perth, Western Australia, via email lists, leaflets, and posters to participate in the four group randomised controlled trial. Participants will be randomised to one of four conditions: (1 education only (non-tailored information only, (2 education plus intervention components to enhance motivation, (3 education plus components to enhance motivation and self-regulation, and (4 education plus components to enhance motivation, self-regulation and habit formation. All intervention groups will receive a computer-tailored intervention administered via a web-based platform and will receive supporting text-messages containing tailored information, prompts and feedback relevant to each condition. All outcomes will be assessed at baseline, and at 3-month follow-up. The primary outcome assessed in this study is physical activity measured using activity monitors. Secondary outcomes include: quality of life, stress, anxiety, sleep, and absenteeism. Website engagement, retention, preferences and intervention fidelity will also be evaluated as well as potential mediators and moderators of intervention

Aerogels in Chemical Engineering: Strategies Toward Tailor-Made Aerogels.

Science.gov (United States)

Smirnova, Irina; Gurikov, Pavel

2017-06-07

The present review deals with recent advances in the rapidly growing field of aerogel research and technology. The major focus of the review lies in approaches that allow tailoring of aerogel properties to meet application-driven requirements. The decisive properties of aerogels are discussed with regard to existing and potential application areas. Various tailoring strategies, such as modulation of the pore structure, coating, surface modification, and post-treatment, are illustrated by results of the last decade. In view of commercialization of aerogel-based products, a panorama of current industrial aerogel suppliers is given, along with a discussion of possible alternative sources for raw materials and precursors. Finally, growing points and perspectives of the aerogel field are summarized.

AI User Support System for SAP ERP

Science.gov (United States)

Vlasov, Vladimir; Chebotareva, Victoria; Rakhimov, Marat; Kruglikov, Sergey

2017-10-01

An intelligent system for SAP ERP user support is proposed in this paper. It enables automatic replies on users’ requests for support, saving time for problem analysis and resolution and improving responsiveness for end users. The system is based on an ensemble of machine learning algorithms of multiclass text classification, providing efficient question understanding, and a special framework for evidence retrieval, providing the best answer derivation.

Infrastructure Support for Collaborative Pervasive Computing Systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Vestergaard Mogensen, Martin

Collaborative Pervasive Computing Systems (CPCS) are currently being deployed to support areas such as clinical work, emergency situations, education, ad-hoc meetings, and other areas involving information sharing and collaboration.These systems allow the users to work together synchronously......, but from different places, by sharing information and coordinating activities. Several researchers have shown the value of such distributed collaborative systems. However, building these systems is by no means a trivial task and introduces a lot of yet unanswered questions. The aforementioned areas......, are all characterized by unstable, volatile environments, either due to the underlying components changing or the nomadic work habits of users. A major challenge, for the creators of collaborative pervasive computing systems, is the construction of infrastructures supporting the system. The complexity...

Instrumentation and control activities at the Electric Power Research Institute to support operator support systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Naser, J.

1995-01-01

Most nuclear power plants in the United States continue to operate with analog instrumentation and control (I and C) technology designed 20 to 40 years ago. This equipment is approaching or exceeding its life expectancy, resulting in increasing maintenance efforts to sustain system performance. Decreasing availability of replacement parts and the accelerating deterioration of the infrastructure of manufacturers that support analog technology exacerbate obsolescence problems and resultant operation and maintenance (O and M) cost increases. Modern digital technology holds a significant potential to improve the safety, cost-effectiveness, productivity, and, therefore, competitiveness of nuclear power plants. Operator support systems provide the tools to help achieve this potential. Reliable, integrated information is a critical element for protecting the utility's capital investment and increasing availability, reliability, and productivity. Integrated operator support systems with integrated information can perform more effectively to increase productivity, to enhance safety, and to reduce O and M costs. The plant communications and computing architecture is the infrastructure needed to allow the implementation of I and C systems and associated operator support systems in an integrated manner. Current technology for distributed digital systems, plant process computers, and plant communications and computing networks support the integration of systems and information. (author). 16 refs

Tailor-Made Additives for Morphology Control in Molecular Bulk-Heterojunction Photovoltaics

KAUST Repository

Graham, Kenneth R.

2013-01-09

Tailor-made additives, which are molecules that share the same molecular structure as a parent molecule with only slight structural variations, have previously been demonstrated as a useful means to control crystallization dynamics in solution. For example, tailor-made additives can be added to solutions of a crystallizing parent molecule to alter the crystal growth rate, size, and shape. We apply this strategy as a means to predictably control morphology in molecular bulk-heterojunction (BHJ) photovoltaic cells. Through the use of an asymmetric oligomer substituted with a bulky triisobutylsilyl end group, the morphology of BHJ blends can be controlled resulting in a near doubling (from 1.3 to 2.2%) in power conversion efficiency. The use of tailor-made additives provides promising opportunities for controlling crystallization dynamics, and thereby film morphologies, for many organic electronic devices such as photovoltaics and field-effect transistors. © 2012 American Chemical Society.

Tailor-Made Additives for Morphology Control in Molecular Bulk-Heterojunction Photovoltaics

KAUST Repository

Graham, Kenneth R.; Stalder, Romain; Wieruszewski, Patrick M.; Patel, Dinesh G.; Salazar, Danielle H.; Reynolds, John R.

2013-01-01

Tailor-made additives, which are molecules that share the same molecular structure as a parent molecule with only slight structural variations, have previously been demonstrated as a useful means to control crystallization dynamics in solution. For example, tailor-made additives can be added to solutions of a crystallizing parent molecule to alter the crystal growth rate, size, and shape. We apply this strategy as a means to predictably control morphology in molecular bulk-heterojunction (BHJ) photovoltaic cells. Through the use of an asymmetric oligomer substituted with a bulky triisobutylsilyl end group, the morphology of BHJ blends can be controlled resulting in a near doubling (from 1.3 to 2.2%) in power conversion efficiency. The use of tailor-made additives provides promising opportunities for controlling crystallization dynamics, and thereby film morphologies, for many organic electronic devices such as photovoltaics and field-effect transistors. © 2012 American Chemical Society.

Operating-System Support for Distributed Multimedia

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mullender, Sape J.; Leslie, Ian M.; McAuley, Derek

1994-01-01

Multimedia applications place new demands upon processors, networks and operating systems. While some network designers, through ATM for example, have considered revolutionary approaches to supporting multimedia, the same cannot be said for operating systems designers. Most work is evolutionary in

Marketing analysis support system; Marketing bunseki shien system

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2000-01-10

Fuji Electric Co., Ltd., in collaboration with Shitashion Japan and Arthur Andersen Ltd., developed a 'marketing analysis support system' which integrally analyzes evaluation factors of various dimensions explaining consumers' purchasing behaviors and which supports business for the efficient operation of product development and demand prediction. This system breaks down products into each evaluation factor from psychological and physical viewpoints, and carries out various kinds of multivariate analysis, thereby making it easy to understand visually, for example, what evaluation factors decide relative positional relations between evaluation factors or between products as well as the position of a product in the whole. Further, more precise marketing analysis and prediction become possible by visually grasping blank areas of products, extent of competition, distribution of products, composition of product series, etc. (translated by NEDO)

General distributed control system for fusion experiments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Klingner, P.L.; Levings, S.J.; Wilkins, R.W.

1986-01-01

A general control system using distributed LSI-11 microprocessors is being developed. Common software residues in each LSI-11 and is tailored to an application by control specifications downloaded from a host computer. The microprocessors, their control interfaces, and the micro-to-host communications are CAMAC based. The host computer also supports an operator interface, coordination of multiple microprocessors, and utilities to create and maintain the control specifications. Typical applications include monitoring safety interlocks as well as controlling vacuum systems, high voltage charging systems, and diagnostics

Systematic tailoring for the implementation of guideline recommendations for anxiety and depressive disorders in general practice: perceived usefulness of tailored interventions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sinnema, H.; Terluin, B.; Wensing, M.; Volker, D.; Franx, G.; van Balkom, A.J.L.M.; de Lange, J.

2013-01-01

Background: The uptake of guideline recommendations in general practice can potentially be improved by designing implementation interventions that are tailored to prospectively identify barriers. However, there is insufficient evidence regarding the most effective and efficient approaches to

Systematic tailoring for the implementation of guideline recommendations for anxiety and depressive disorders in general practice: perceived usefulness of tailored interventions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sinnema, H.; Terluin, B.; Wensing, M.; Volker, D.; Franx, G.; Balkom, A. van; Lange, J.

2013-01-01

BACKGROUND: The uptake of guideline recommendations in general practice can potentially be improved by designing implementation interventions that are tailored to prospectively identify barriers. However, there is insufficient evidence regarding the most effective and efficient approaches to

PLM system support for modular product development

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bruun, Hans Peter Lomholt; Mortensen, Niels Henrik; Harlou, Ulf

2015-01-01

A modular design strategy both enables, but also demands, parallelism in design activities and collaboration between a diversity of disciplines in companies, which often involves supporting computer-based tools for enhancing interaction, design management, and communication. Product data management...... (PDM) and product lifecycle management (PLM) systems offer support by automating and managing some of the operational complexity of modular design activities. PLM system tools are used for handling a variety of product definitions, to manage workflow of development activities, and to measure relational...... properties such as cost and performance. Companies often use a PLM tool for management of CAD files, documents, and drawings, but they do not take advantage of the full potential of the PLM system to support the development activities of modular product designs. The key result of this paper...

Information systems to support surveillance for malaria elimination.

Science.gov (United States)

Ohrt, Colin; Roberts, Kathryn W; Sturrock, Hugh J W; Wegbreit, Jennifer; Lee, Bruce Y; Gosling, Roly D

2015-07-01

Robust and responsive surveillance systems are critical for malaria elimination. The ideal information system that supports malaria elimination includes: rapid and complete case reporting, incorporation of related data, such as census or health survey information, central data storage and management, automated and expert data analysis, and customized outputs and feedback that lead to timely and targeted responses. Spatial information enhances such a system, ensuring cases are tracked and mapped over time. Data sharing and coordination across borders are vital and new technologies can improve data speed, accuracy, and quality. Parts of this ideal information system exist and are in use, but have yet to be linked together coherently. Malaria elimination programs should support the implementation and refinement of information systems to support surveillance and response and ensure political and financial commitment to maintain the systems and the human resources needed to run them. National malaria programs should strive to improve the access and utility of these information systems and establish cross-border data sharing mechanisms through the use of standard indicators for malaria surveillance. Ultimately, investment in the information technologies that support a timely and targeted surveillance and response system is essential for malaria elimination. © The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.

A viable way to tailor carbon nanomaterials by irradiation-induced transformations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Caudillo, R.; Troiani, H.E.; Miki-Yoshida, M.; Marques, M.A.L.; Rubio, A.; Yacaman, M.J.

2005-01-01

Since the discovery of carbon nanotubes (CNT), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) has been the most important tool in their investigation. It is possible to use electron irradiation in a TEM to construct a single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT) from an amorphous carbon film. Here we show that such a synthesis method creates a large number of carbon ad-atoms, which after some critical amount of radiation act to restore the system by reconstructing the carbon film. The behavior of the ad-atoms can be controlled by adjusting the current density in the microscope, suggesting that carbon nanomaterials can be tailored by electron irradiation

Intelligent tactical asset allocation support system

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hiemstra, Y.

1995-01-01

This paper presents an advanced support system for Tactical Asset Allocation. Asset allocation explains over 90% of portfolio performance (Brinson, Hood and Beebower, 1988). Tactical asset allocation adjusts a strategic portfolio on the basis of short term market outlooks. The system includes

Development of the Supported Decision Making Inventory System.

Science.gov (United States)

Shogren, Karrie A; Wehmeyer, Michael L; Uyanik, Hatice; Heidrich, Megan

2017-12-01

Supported decision making has received increased attention as an alternative to guardianship and a means to enable people with intellectual and developmental disabilities to exercise their right to legal capacity. Assessments are needed that can used by people with disabilities and their systems of supports to identify and plan for needed supports to enable decision making. This article describes the steps taken to develop such an assessment tool, the Supported Decision Making Inventory System (SDMIS), and initial feedback received from self-advocates with intellectual disability. The three sections of the SDMIS (Supported Decision Making Personal Factors Inventory, Supported Decision Making Environmental Demands Inventory, and Decision Making Autonomy Inventory) are described and implications for future research, policy, and practice are discussed.

Decision Support System for Fighter Pilots

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Randleff, Lars Rosenberg

2007-01-01

During a mission over enemy territory a fighter aircraft may be engaged by ground based threats. The pilot can use different measures to avoid the aircraft from being detected by e.g. enemy radar systems. If the enemy detects the aircraft a missile may be fired to seek and destroy the aircraft...... and countermeasures that can be applied to mitigate threats. This work is concerned with finding proper evasive actions when a fighter aircraft is engaged by ground based threats. To help the pilot in deciding on these actions a decision support system may be implemented. The environment in which such a system must....... When new threats occur the decision support system must be able to provide suggestions within a fraction of a second. Since the time it takes to find an optimal solution to the mathematical model can not comply with this requirement solutions are sought using a metaheuristic....

Tailorable Trimethyl chitosans as adjuvant for intranasal immunization

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Verheul, R.J.

2010-01-01

Tailorable Trimethyl Chitosans as Adjuvant for Intranasal Immunization Active vaccination has proven to be the most (cost) effective tool in the fight against infectious diseases. Nowadays, most vaccines are administered via parenteral injection. However, the risk of contaminated needles and need

Visual management support system

Science.gov (United States)

Lee Anderson; Jerry Mosier; Geoffrey Chandler

1979-01-01

The Visual Management Support System (VMSS) is an extension of an existing computer program called VIEWIT, which has been extensively used by the U. S. Forest Service. The capabilities of this program lie in the rapid manipulation of large amounts of data, specifically opera-ting as a tool to overlay or merge one set of data with another. VMSS was conceived to...

Artificial and bioartificial support systems for liver failure

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Liu, J P; Gluud, L L; Als-Nielsen, B

2004-01-01

Artificial and bioartificial liver support systems may 'bridge' patients with acute or acute-on-chronic liver failure to liver transplantation or recovery.......Artificial and bioartificial liver support systems may 'bridge' patients with acute or acute-on-chronic liver failure to liver transplantation or recovery....

System Design for Transitional Aircraft Support

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

John P.T. Mo

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The Australian Defence Force and industry are undergoing significant changes in the way they work together in capability enhancement programs. There are capability gaps in maintaining and supporting current obligations during major asset acquisition, which has migrated into the front line of Royal Air Force Fighter Groups as a new capability. This paper examines a steady state support solution and argues that in order to interchange from one support solution to a new architecture there must be a period for transition, which may need its own interim business model and operational service. A preliminary study of several existing support solutions reveals the generic elements that need to be parameterized and traced through the support system architecture trajectory.

Network support for system initiated checkpoints

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Dong; Heidelberger, Philip

2013-01-29

A system, method and computer program product for supporting system initiated checkpoints in parallel computing systems. The system and method generates selective control signals to perform checkpointing of system related data in presence of messaging activity associated with a user application running at the node. The checkpointing is initiated by the system such that checkpoint data of a plurality of network nodes may be obtained even in the presence of user applications running on highly parallel computers that include ongoing user messaging activity.

Supporting Space Systems Design via Systems Dependency Analysis Methodology

Science.gov (United States)

Guariniello, Cesare

assess the behavior of each system based on its internal status and on the topology of its dependencies on systems connected to it. Designers and decision makers can therefore quickly analyze and explore the behavior of complex systems and evaluate different architectures under various working conditions. The methods support educated decision making both in the design and in the update process of systems architecture, reducing the need to execute extensive simulations. In particular, in the phase of concept generation and selection, the information given by the methods can be used to identify promising architectures to be further tested and improved, while discarding architectures that do not show the required level of global features. The methods, when used in conjunction with appropriate metrics, also allow for improved reliability and risk analysis, as well as for automatic scheduling and re-scheduling based on the features of the dependencies and on the accepted level of risk. This dissertation illustrates the use of the two methods in sample aerospace applications, both in the operational and in the developmental domain. The applications show how to use the developed methodology to evaluate the impact of failures, assess the criticality of systems, quantify metrics of interest, quantify the impact of delays, support informed decision making when scheduling the development of systems and evaluate the achievement of partial capabilities. A larger, well-framed case study illustrates how the Systems Operational Dependency Analysis method and the Systems Developmental Dependency Analysis method can support analysis and decision making, at the mid and high level, in the design process of architectures for the exploration of Mars. The case study also shows how the methods do not replace the classical systems engineering methodologies, but support and improve them.

Safety implications of electronic driving support systems : an orientation.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Gundy, C.M. Steyvers, F.J.J.M. & Kaptein, N.A.

1995-01-01

This report focuses on traffic safety aspects of driving support systems. The report consists of two parts. First of all, the report discusses a number of topics, relevant for the implementation and evaluation of driving support systems. These topics include: (1) safety research into driving support

Optimal support arrangement of piping systems using genetic algorithm

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chiba, T.; Okado, S.; Fujii, I.; Itami, K.

1996-01-01

The support arrangement is one of the important factors in the design of piping systems. Much time is required to decide the arrangement of the supports. The authors applied a genetic algorithm to find the optimum support arrangement for piping systems. Examples are provided to illustrate the effectiveness of the genetic algorithm. Good results are obtained when applying the genetic algorithm to the actual designing of the piping system

An Internet- and mobile-based tailored intervention to enhance maintenance of physical activity after cardiac rehabilitation: short-term results of a randomized controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Antypas, Konstantinos; Wangberg, Silje C

2014-03-11

(Kolmogorov-Smirnov Z=0.823, P=.38, r=.17). At 3 months after discharge, the tailored intervention group (n=7) had a significantly higher median level of overall physical activity (median 5613.0, IQR 2828.0) than the control group (n=12, median 1356.0, IQR 2937.0; Kolmogorov-Smirnov Z=1.397, P=.02, r=.33). The median adherence was 45.0 (95% CI 0.0-169.8) days for the tailored group and 111.0 (95% CI 45.1-176.9) days for the control group; however, the difference was not significant (P=.39). There were no statistically significant differences between the 2 groups in stage of change, self-efficacy, social support, perceived tailoring, anxiety, or depression. Because of the small sample size and the high attrition rate at the follow-up visits, we cannot make conclusions regarding the efficacy of our approach, but the results indicate that the tailored version of the intervention may have contributed to the long-term higher physical activity maintained after cardiac rehabilitation by participants receiving the tailored intervention compared with those receiving the nontailored intervention. ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01223170; http://clinicaltrials.gov/show/NCT01223170 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6Nch4ldcL).

Microstructural gradients in thin hard coatings -- tailor-made

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pantleon, Karen; Oettel, Heinrich

1998-01-01

) alternating sputtering with and without substrate voltage and (c) pulsed bias voltage. On the basis of X-ray diffraction measurements, it is demonstrated that residual stress gradients and texture gradients can be designed tailor-made. Furthermore, results of microhardness measurements and scratch tests...

Excellent bonding behaviour of novel surface-tailored fibre ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Administrator

tured completely before pull-out, leading to full utilization of its tensile strength, and ... Composite rods; surface tailoring; cementitious matrix; pull-out test; bonding characteristics. 1. ... machine (Lloyd LR50K) at a speed of 0∙5 mm/min with a.

A Cost Model for Integrated Logistic Support Activities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Elena Nenni

2013-01-01

Full Text Available An Integrated Logistic Support (ILS service has the objective of improving a system’s efficiency and availability for the life cycle. The system constructor offers the service to the customer, and she becomes the Contractor Logistic Support (CLS. The aim of this paper is to propose an approach to support the CLS in the budget formulation. Specific goals of the model are the provision of the annual cost of ILS activities through a specific cost model and a comprehensive examination of expected benefits, costs and savings under alternative ILS strategies. A simple example derived from an industrial application is also provided to illustrate the idea. Scientific literature is lacking in the topic and documents from the military are just dealing with the issue of performance measurement. Moreover, they are obviously focused on the customer’s perspective. Other scientific papers are general and focused only on maintenance or life cycle management. The model developed in this paper approaches the problem from the perspective of the CLS, and it is specifically tailored on the main issues of an ILS service.

Development of JRR-4 operation support system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takahashi, Hiroki; Yamamoto, Kazuyoshi; Yoritsune, Tsutomu; Arai, Nobuyoshi; Birumachi, Takashi

1999-03-01

The Japan Research Reactor No.4 (JRR-4) is a light water moderated and cooled, graphite reflected, pool-type reactor with the thermal output of 3500 kW. In February 1996, a work on core modification from high-enriched fuels to low-enriched ones was started and the work on modification was completed in May 1998. As a part of the work, Operation Support System (OSS) was adopted for the purpose of reducing load of operator, preventing operator's error and supplying operation data to users. In this paper, JRR-4 Operation Support System's configuration, characteristics and development process are described. OSS consists mainly of a workstation (WS), μXL and Personal Computer (PC). WS is used for collection of operation data. μXL is used for cooling system control and PC is used for operators' support. All of the program applications used in WS, μXL and PC are designed to make sure of high flexibility for the demands on modification from operators and new operation modes. The result of adopting this system, the consolidation monitoring, automation of part of reactor operation and data management were realized. In addition, the cooling control system was compacted. (author)

Research on operation support system for nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wakabayashi, Jiro

1989-01-01

Nuclear power plants are the typical, complex, large scale engineering system, and at the time of accidents, there is the possibility to extend disasters to wide range beyond borders, therefore, it is the feature that the requirement for their reliability and safety is much severe as compared with other engineering systems. The fact that human errors become the major cause of large accidents is in common in large scale engineering systems, and the development of the operation support system for preventing it has become an important research subject. Also the research on design support system and maintenance support system is in progress to prevent human errors. Operation support system is composed of diagnostic system, operation guide system, man-machine interface and knowledge data base, and throughout these, the research on the human errors arising in the process of human decision making becomes the basis. Rasmussen's model for decision making, the classification of human errors and the reliability analysis for men, the factors affecting human errors, the acquisition of knowledge, the compilation and management of knowledge data base, the diagnostic system, operation guide system and man-machine interface are described. (K.I.)

Cognitive System Engineering Approach to Design of Work Support Systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rasmussen, Jens

1995-01-01

The problem of designing work support systems for flexible, dynamic work environments is discussed and a framework for analysis of work in terms of behavior shaping constraints is described. The application of 'ecological interfaces' presenting to the user a map of the relational structure...... of the work space is advocated from the thesis that a map is a better guidance of discretionary tasks than is a route instruction. For the same reason, support of system design is proposed in terms of maps of the design territory, rather than in terms of guidelines....

KESS: Knowledge Engineering Support System

OpenAIRE

Said, Mohamed Ben; Dougherty, Nini; Anderson, Curtis; Altman, Stanley J.; Bouhaddou, Omar; Warner, Homer R.

1987-01-01

KESS (Knowledge Engineering Support System) is a relational information management system created at the University of Utah to document each step in the building of four expert knowledge bases. In weekly knowledge engineering sessions, groups of experts propose decision making criteria and examine information sources in the process of creating HELP knowledge frames. KESS utilizes many-to-many links with multiple files and central link files to track the different kinds of information generate...

System for selecting relevant information for decision support.

Science.gov (United States)

Kalina, Jan; Seidl, Libor; Zvára, Karel; Grünfeldová, Hana; Slovák, Dalibor; Zvárová, Jana

2013-01-01

We implemented a prototype of a decision support system called SIR which has a form of a web-based classification service for diagnostic decision support. The system has the ability to select the most relevant variables and to learn a classification rule, which is guaranteed to be suitable also for high-dimensional measurements. The classification system can be useful for clinicians in primary care to support their decision-making tasks with relevant information extracted from any available clinical study. The implemented prototype was tested on a sample of patients in a cardiological study and performs an information extraction from a high-dimensional set containing both clinical and gene expression data.

Developing Information Systems for Competitive Intelligence Support.

Science.gov (United States)

Hohhof, Bonnie

1994-01-01

Discusses issues connected with developing information systems for competitive intelligence support; defines the elements of an effective competitive information system; and summarizes issues affecting system design and implementation. Highlights include intelligence information; information needs; information sources; decision making; and…

A Comparative Study of Electronic Performance Support Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Nguyen, Frank; Klein, James D.; Sullivan, Howard

2005-01-01

Electronic performance support systems (EPSS) deliver relevant support information to users while they are performing tasks. The present study examined the effect of different types of EPSS on user performance, attitudes, system use and time on task. Employees at a manufacturing company were asked to complete a procedural software task and…

Ladnaan : evaluation of a culturally tailored parenting support program to Somali-born parents

OpenAIRE

Osman, Fatumo

2017-01-01

Background: Research shows that immigrant families encounter different complexities and challenges in a new host country, such as acculturation, isolation and lack of social support. These challenges have been shown to have negative impacts on immigrant families’ mental and emotional health, family function, parenting practices and parents’ sense of competence. Parental support programmes have been shown to positively affect parental skills, strengthen the parent-child relation...

An approach for the development of visual configuration systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hvam, Lars; Ladeby, Klaes Rohde

2007-01-01

How can a visual configuration system be developed to support the specification process' in companies that manufacture customer tailored products? This article focuses on how visual configuration systems can be developed. The approach for developing visual configuration systems has been developed...... by Centre for Product Modelling (CPM) at The Technical University of Denmark. The approach is based on experiences from a visualization project in co-operation between CPM and the global provider of power protection American Power Conversion (APC). The visual configuration system was developed in 2001...... of the product in the visual configuration system....

Development of a simplified piping support system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leung, J.; Anderson, P.H.; Tang, Y.K.; Kassawara, R.P.; Tang, H.T.

1987-01-01

This paper presents the results of experimental and analytical studies for developing a simplified piping support system (SPSS) for nuclear power piping in place of snubbers. The basic concept of the SPSS is a passive seismic support system consisting of limit stops. Large gaps are provided to allow for free thermal expansion during normal plant operation while preventing excessive displacement during a seismic event. The results are part of a research and development program sponsored by EPRI. (orig./HP)

Knowledge representation for decision support systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Methlie, L.B.

1985-01-01

This book is organized into three sections in accordance with the structure of the conference program. First section contains four major papers which were commissioned by the Programme Committee to set the tone for the conference and to provide a structured source of relevant material from contributing disciplines. The second section contains specific papers submitted to the conference, and concerned with the following topics of specific interest: epistemological issues for decision support systems (DSS), capturing organizational knowledge for DSS, complementarity between human and formal DSS, and representations for adaption. The third section contains the short papers on any topic of relevance to the theme of the conference. It is hoped that the two working conferences organized by WG 8.3 will contribute to the development of a coherent knowledge and understanding of the class of computerized information systems called Decision Support Systems. (Auth.)

Requirements by the operator of supporting systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grimm, E.; Lot, L.

1996-01-01

Requirements by the nuclear power station operator on computer support orient themselves to the various operating situations which can arise in the plant. Event-oriented or system-oriented methods of handling determine the type of support by the computer. Pure plant information in situations with few events, an intelligent alarm system in situations with many events and a guide by means of pre-prepared procedures are an aspect of the operator requirements of computer solutions. These are the themes dealt with in this paper. A further theme is the support of the operator by the ergonomics of the control room in the areas of working place, lighting, air conditioning and acoustics. (author) 4 figs

Evaluating a federated medical search engine: tailoring the methodology and reporting the evaluation outcomes.

Science.gov (United States)

Saparova, D; Belden, J; Williams, J; Richardson, B; Schuster, K

2014-01-01

Federated medical search engines are health information systems that provide a single access point to different types of information. Their efficiency as clinical decision support tools has been demonstrated through numerous evaluations. Despite their rigor, very few of these studies report holistic evaluations of medical search engines and even fewer base their evaluations on existing evaluation frameworks. To evaluate a federated medical search engine, MedSocket, for its potential net benefits in an established clinical setting. This study applied the Human, Organization, and Technology (HOT-fit) evaluation framework in order to evaluate MedSocket. The hierarchical structure of the HOT-factors allowed for identification of a combination of efficiency metrics. Human fit was evaluated through user satisfaction and patterns of system use; technology fit was evaluated through the measurements of time-on-task and the accuracy of the found answers; and organization fit was evaluated from the perspective of system fit to the existing organizational structure. Evaluations produced mixed results and suggested several opportunities for system improvement. On average, participants were satisfied with MedSocket searches and confident in the accuracy of retrieved answers. However, MedSocket did not meet participants' expectations in terms of download speed, access to information, and relevance of the search results. These mixed results made it necessary to conclude that in the case of MedSocket, technology fit had a significant influence on the human and organization fit. Hence, improving technological capabilities of the system is critical before its net benefits can become noticeable. The HOT-fit evaluation framework was instrumental in tailoring the methodology for conducting a comprehensive evaluation of the search engine. Such multidimensional evaluation of the search engine resulted in recommendations for system improvement.

Life Support Systems: Oxygen Generation and Recovery

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The Advanced Exploration Systems (AES) Life Support Systems project Oxygen Generation and Recovery technology development area encompasses several sub-tasks in an...

MOIDSS?- Mobile Online Intelligent Decision Support System, Phase II

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — GRID has had a successfully completed Phase I 'Mobile Online Intelligent Decision Support System' (MOIDSS). The system developed into a total solution that supports...

The Invasive Species Forecasting System

Science.gov (United States)

Schnase, John; Most, Neal; Gill, Roger; Ma, Peter

2011-01-01

The Invasive Species Forecasting System (ISFS) provides computational support for the generic work processes found in many regional-scale ecosystem modeling applications. Decision support tools built using ISFS allow a user to load point occurrence field sample data for a plant species of interest and quickly generate habitat suitability maps for geographic regions of management concern, such as a national park, monument, forest, or refuge. This type of decision product helps resource managers plan invasive species protection, monitoring, and control strategies for the lands they manage. Until now, scientists and resource managers have lacked the data-assembly and computing capabilities to produce these maps quickly and cost efficiently. ISFS focuses on regional-scale habitat suitability modeling for invasive terrestrial plants. ISFS s component architecture emphasizes simplicity and adaptability. Its core services can be easily adapted to produce model-based decision support tools tailored to particular parks, monuments, forests, refuges, and related management units. ISFS can be used to build standalone run-time tools that require no connection to the Internet, as well as fully Internet-based decision support applications. ISFS provides the core data structures, operating system interfaces, network interfaces, and inter-component constraints comprising the canonical workflow for habitat suitability modeling. The predictors, analysis methods, and geographic extents involved in any particular model run are elements of the user space and arbitrarily configurable by the user. ISFS provides small, lightweight, readily hardened core components of general utility. These components can be adapted to unanticipated uses, are tailorable, and require at most a loosely coupled, nonproprietary connection to the Web. Users can invoke capabilities from a command line; programmers can integrate ISFS's core components into more complex systems and services. Taken together, these

Tactical Utility of Tailored Systems

Science.gov (United States)

2015-07-10

create a procurement system to produce materiel at a cost low enough to make equipment disposable. Further cost savings may be realized by upgrading...replacement parts. With the advent of 3-d printing and digital manufacturing, a new part may be procured as easily as scanning a bar code and pressing...9/11 Commission Report “Imagination is not a gift usually associated with bureaucracies. It is therefore crucial to find a way of routinizing, even

ELAN - expert system supported information and management system for analytical laboratories

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jaeschke, A.; Orth, H.; Zilly, G.

1990-08-01

The demand for high efficiency and short response time calls for the use of computer support in chemico-analytical laboratories. This is usually achieved by laboratory information and management systems covering the three levels of analytical instrument automation, laboratory operation support and laboratory management. The management component of the systems implemented up to now suffers from a lack of flexibility as far as unforeseen analytical investigations outside the laboratory routine work are concerned. Another drawback is the lack of adaptability with respect to structural changes in laboratory organization. It can be eliminated by the application of expert system structures and methods for the implementation of this system level. The ELAN laboratory information and management system has been developed on the basis of this concept. (orig.) [de

Fault Detection for Shipboard Monitoring and Decision Support Systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lajic, Zoran; Nielsen, Ulrik Dam

2009-01-01

In this paper a basic idea of a fault-tolerant monitoring and decision support system will be explained. Fault detection is an important part of the fault-tolerant design for in-service monitoring and decision support systems for ships. In the paper, a virtual example of fault detection...... will be presented for a containership with a real decision support system onboard. All possible faults can be simulated and detected using residuals and the generalized likelihood ratio (GLR) algorithm....

MINDS - Medical Information Network Decision Support System

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Armenian, H. K

2008-01-01

.... The increase in and complexity of medical data at various levels of resolution has increased the need for system level advancements in clinical decision support systems that provide computer-aided...

Dose calculation system for remotely supporting radiotherapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saito, K.; Kunieda, E.; Narita, Y.; Kimura, H.; Hirai, M.; Deloar, H. M.; Kaneko, K.; Ozaki, M.; Fujisaki, T.; Myojoyama, A.; Saitoh, H.

2005-01-01

The dose calculation system IMAGINE is being developed keeping in mind remotely supporting external radiation therapy using photon beams. The system is expected to provide an accurate picture of the dose distribution in a patient body, using a Monte Carlo calculation that employs precise models of the patient body and irradiation head. The dose calculation will be performed utilising super-parallel computing at the dose calculation centre, which is equipped with the ITBL computer, and the calculated results will be transferred through a network. The system is intended to support the quality assurance of current, widely carried out radiotherapy and, further, to promote the prevalence of advanced radiotherapy. Prototypes of the modules constituting the system have already been constructed and used to obtain basic data that are necessary in order to decide on the concrete design of the system. The final system will be completed in 2007. (authors)

Development of a simplified piping support system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leung, J.; Anderson, P.H.; Tang, Y.K.; Kassawara, R.P.; Tang, H.T.

1987-01-01

This paper presents the results of experimental and analytical studies for developing a simplified piping support system (SPSS) for nuclear power piping in place of snubbers. The basic concept of the SPSS is a passive seismic support system consisting of limit stops. Large gaps are provided to allow for free thermal expansion during normal plant operation while preventing excessive displacement during a seismic event. The results are part of a research and development program sponsored by the Electric Power Research Institute

Database system selection for marketing strategies support in information systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

František Dařena

2007-01-01

Full Text Available In today’s dynamically changing environment marketing has a significant role. Creating successful marketing strategies requires large amount of high quality information of various kinds and data types. A powerful database management system is a necessary condition for marketing strategies creation support. The paper briefly describes the field of marketing strategies and specifies the features that should be provided by database systems in connection with these strategies support. Major commercial (Oracle, DB2, MS SQL, Sybase and open-source (PostgreSQL, MySQL, Firebird databases are than examined from the point of view of accordance with these characteristics and their comparison in made. The results are useful for making the decision before acquisition of a database system during information system’s hardware architecture specification.

Time series with tailored nonlinearities

Science.gov (United States)

Räth, C.; Laut, I.

2015-10-01

It is demonstrated how to generate time series with tailored nonlinearities by inducing well-defined constraints on the Fourier phases. Correlations between the phase information of adjacent phases and (static and dynamic) measures of nonlinearities are established and their origin is explained. By applying a set of simple constraints on the phases of an originally linear and uncorrelated Gaussian time series, the observed scaling behavior of the intensity distribution of empirical time series can be reproduced. The power law character of the intensity distributions being typical for, e.g., turbulence and financial data can thus be explained in terms of phase correlations.

An ecological momentary intervention for smoking cessation: The associations of just-in-time, tailored messages with lapse risk factors.

Science.gov (United States)

Hébert, Emily T; Stevens, Elise M; Frank, Summer G; Kendzor, Darla E; Wetter, David W; Zvolensky, Michael J; Buckner, Julia D; Businelle, Michael S

2018-03-01

Smartphone apps can provide real-time, tailored interventions for smoking cessation. The current study examines the effectiveness of a smartphone-based smoking cessation application that assessed risk for imminent smoking lapse multiple times per day and provided messages tailored to current smoking lapse risk and specific lapse triggers. Participants (N=59) recruited from a safety-net hospital smoking cessation clinic completed phone-based ecological momentary assessments (EMAs) 5 times/day for 3 consecutive weeks (1week pre-quit, 2weeks post-quit). Risk for smoking lapse was estimated in real-time using a novel weighted lapse risk estimator. With each EMA, participants received messages tailored to current level of risk for imminent smoking lapse and self-reported presence of smoking urge, stress, cigarette availability, and motivation to quit. Generalized linear mixed model analyses determined whether messages tailored to specific lapse risk factors were associated with greater reductions in these triggers than messages not tailored to specific triggers. Overall, messages tailored to smoking urge, cigarette availability, or stress corresponded with greater reductions in those triggers than messages that were not tailored to specific triggers (p's=0.02 to <0.001). Although messages tailored to stress were associated with greater reductions in stress than messages not tailored to stress, the association was non-significant (p=0.892) when only moments of high stress were included in the analysis. Mobile technology can be used to conduct real-time smoking lapse risk assessment and provide tailored treatment content. Findings provide initial evidence that tailored content may impact users' urge to smoke, stress, and cigarette availability. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Differences in Health and Social Support between Homeless Men and Women Entering Permanent Supportive Housing.

Science.gov (United States)

Winetrobe, Hailey; Wenzel, Suzanne; Rhoades, Harmony; Henwood, Benjamin; Rice, Eric; Harris, Taylor

Permanent supportive housing (PSH) is the leading intervention to end chronic homelessness. Little is known, however, about gender differences, including potential disparities in physical and mental health and social support, that might inform services available through PSH. This study included 421 homeless adults, at least 39 years old, English- or Spanish-speaking, who were moving into PSH through 26 different agencies in the Los Angeles area. Compared with men entering PSH, homeless women (28% of the sample) were younger (p social networks (Coefficient, 0.79, p social support among homeless adults moving into PSH. PSH cannot be a one-size-fits-all approach. Supportive services within housing should be tailored based on gender and other individual needs. Copyright © 2017 Jacobs Institute of Women's Health. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Field profile tailoring in a-Si:H radiation detectors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fujieda, I.; Cho, G.; Conti, M.; Drewery, J.; Kaplan, S.N.; Perez-Mendez, V.; Quershi, S.; Wildermuth, D.; Street, R.A.

1990-03-01

The capability of tailoring the field profile in reverse-biased a-Si:H diodes by doping and/or manipulating electrode shapes opens a way to many interesting device structures. Charge collection in a-Si:H radiation detectors is improved for high LET particle detection by inserting thin doped layers into the i-layer of the usual p-i-n diode. This buried p-i-n structure enables us to apply higher reverse-bias and the electric field is enhanced in the mid i-layer. Field profiles of the new structures are calculated and the improved charge collection process is discussed. Also discussed is the possibility of field profile tailoring by utilizing the fixed space charges in i-layers and/or manipulating electrode shapes of the reverse-biased p-i-n diodes. 10 refs., 7 figs

Effects of in-car support on mental workload and driving performance of older drivers.

Science.gov (United States)

Davidse, Ragnhild J; Hagenzieker, Marjan P; van Wolffelaar, Peter C; Brouwer, Wiebo H

2009-08-01

This study examined the extent to which driving performance of 10 older (70-88 years old) and 30 younger participants (30-50 years old) improves as a result of support by a driver assistance system. Various studies have indicated that advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) may provide tailored assistance for older drivers and thereby improve their safe mobility. While drivers followed an urban route in a driving simulator, an ADAS provided them with prior knowledge on the next intersection. The system was evaluated in terms of effects on workload and safety performance. Messages informing drivers about the right-of-way regulation, obstructed view of an intersection, and safe gaps to join or cross traffic streams led to safer driving performance. A message regarding an unexpected one-way street led to fewer route errors. In general, effects were the same for all age groups. Workload was not reduced by the support system. The evaluated support system shows promising effects for all age groups. Longer evaluation periods are needed to determine long-term effects. The messages provided by the evaluated system are currently not provided by existing ADAS such as advanced cruise control and navigation systems, but they could possibly be added to them in the future.

Decision Support System Based on Computational Collective Intelligence in Campus Information Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Saito, Yoshihito; Matsuo, Tokuro

Education institutions such as universities have a lot of information including book information, equipment administrative information, student information, and several others. The institutions also have multiple information in time series. As collective intelligence in campus, integrating and reusing these preserved information regarding career and taking a class, university can effectively support students' decision making of their getting jobs and subjects choice. Our purpose of support is to increase student's motivation. In this paper, we focus on course record and job information included in students' information, and propose the method to analyze correlation between a pattern of taking class and job lined up. Afterwards, we propose a support system regarding getting a job and taking class by using our proposed method. For a student who has his/her favorite job to get, the system supports his/her decision making of lecture choice by recommending a set of appropriate lecture groups. On another hand, for a student who does not have favorite job to get, the system supports his/her decision making of getting job by presenting appropriate job families related with lecture group in which he/she has ever taken. The contribution of this paper is showing a concrete method to reuse the campus collective information, implementing a system, and user perspectives.

Portable, space-saving medical patient support system

Science.gov (United States)

Bzorgi,; Fariborz, [Knoxville, TN

2011-02-01

A support platform having a stowed configuration and a deployed configuration on a floor. The support platform is related to stretcher devices that are used for transporting, confining, or conducting medical procedures on medical patients in medical emergencies. The support platform typically includes a work surface that has a geometric extent. A base that typically includes a plurality of frame members is provided, and the frame members are disposed across the geometric extent of, and proximal to, the work surface in the stowed configuration. The frame members are typically disposed on the floor in the deployed configuration. There is a foldable bracing system engaged with the work surface and engaged with the base. At least a portion of the foldable bracing system is disposed substantially inside at least a portion of the plurality of frame members in the stowed configuration. Further, the foldable bracing system is configured for translocation of the work surface distal from the base in the deployed configuration.

Custom-tailored tissue engineered polycaprolactone scaffolds for total disc replacement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Van Uden, S; Silva-Correia, J; Correlo, V M; Oliveira, J M; Reis, R L

2015-01-01

Degeneration of the intervertebral disc (IVD) represents a significant musculoskeletal disease burden. Tissue engineering has proposed several strategies comprising the use of biodegradable materials to prepare scaffolds that can present mechanical properties similar to those of native IVD tissues. However, this might be insufficient, since the patient’s intervertebral space geometry must be replicated to allow for appropriate implant fixation and integration. Herein, we propose the use of reverse engineering and rapid prototyping techniques with the goal of preparing custom-tailored annulus fibrosus scaffolds; these techniques have previously been applied to rabbit models. The IVD reverse-engineered architecture was obtained by means of microcomputed tomography acquisition and three-dimensional modelling, resulting in a computer-aided design (CAD) that replicates the original rabbit IVD. Later, a fused deposition-modelling three-dimensional printer was used to produce the scaffolds with different geometries provided by the CAD, using polycaprolactone (PCL) with 100% infill density. The microstructure of the PCL scaffolds was investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), which allowed us to observe an adequate fusion adhesion between the layers. The SEM images revealed that, up to the point of moderate resolution, the porosities manually designed in the CAD model were successfully replicated. The PCL scaffolds’ three-dimensional architecture was also assessed by means of microcomputed tomography analysis. Compressive stiffness was determined using a mechanical testing system. Results showed higher values than those of human IVDs (5.9–6.7 kN mm −1 versus 1.2 kN mm −1 , respectively). In vitro studies were performed to investigate the possible cytotoxicity of the polycaprolactone scaffolds’ leachables. The results showed that the custom-tailored PCL scaffolds do not have any deleterious cytotoxic effect over annulus fibrosus cells or the mouse lung

System support software for TSTA [Tritium Systems Test Assembly

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Claborn, G.W.; Mann, L.W.; Nielson, C.W.

1987-10-01

The fact that Tritium Systems Test Assembly (TSTA) is an experimental facility makes it impossible and undesirable to try to forecast the exact software requirements. Thus the software had to be written in a manner that would allow modifications without compromising the safety requirements imposed by the handling of tritium. This suggested a multi-level approach to the software. In this approach (much like the ISO network model) each level is isolated from the level below and above by cleanly defined interfaces. For example, the subsystem support level interfaces with the subsystem hardware through the software support level. Routines in the software support level provide operations like ''OPEN VALVE'' and CLOSE VALVE'' to the subsystem level. This isolates the subsystem level from the actual hardware. This is advantageous because changes can occur in any level without the need for propagating the change to any other level. The TSTA control system consists of the hardware level, the data conversion level, the operator interface level, and the subsystem process level. These levels are described

Review of current status for designing severe accident management support system

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jeong, Kwang Sub

2000-05-01

The development of operator support system (OSS) is ongoing in many other countries due to the complexity both in design and in operation for nuclear power plant. The computerized operator support system includes monitoring of some critical parameters, early detection of plant transient, monitoring of component status, plant maintenance, and safety parameter display, and the operator support system for these areas are developed and are being used in some plants. Up to now, the most operator support system covers the normal operation, abnormal operation, and emergency operation. Recently, however, the operator support system for severe accident is to be developed in some countries. The study for the phenomena of severe accident is not performed sufficiently, but, based on the result up to now, the operator support system even for severe accident will be developed in this study. To do this, at first, the current status of the operator support system for normal/abnormal/emergency operation is reviewed, and the positive aspects and negative aspects of systems are analyzed by their characteristics. And also, the major items that should be considered in designing the severe accident operator support system are derived from the review. With the survey of domestic and foreign operator support systems, they are reviewed in terms of the safety parameter display system, decision-making support system, and procedure-tracking system. For the severe accident, the severe accident management guideline (SAMG) which is developed by Westinghouse is reviewed; the characteristics, structure, and logical flow of SAMG are studied. In addition, the critical parameters for severe accident, which are the basis for operators decision-making in severe accident management and are supplied to the operators and the technical support center, are reviewed, too.

Review of current status for designing severe accident management support system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jeong, Kwang Sub

2000-05-01

The development of operator support system (OSS) is ongoing in many other countries due to the complexity both in design and in operation for nuclear power plant. The computerized operator support system includes monitoring of some critical parameters, early detection of plant transient, monitoring of component status, plant maintenance, and safety parameter display, and the operator support system for these areas are developed and are being used in some plants. Up to now, the most operator support system covers the normal operation, abnormal operation, and emergency operation. Recently, however, the operator support system for severe accident is to be developed in some countries. The study for the phenomena of severe accident is not performed sufficiently, but, based on the result up to now, the operator support system even for severe accident will be developed in this study. To do this, at first, the current status of the operator support system for normal/abnormal/emergency operation is reviewed, and the positive aspects and negative aspects of systems are analyzed by their characteristics. And also, the major items that should be considered in designing the severe accident operator support system are derived from the review. With the survey of domestic and foreign operator support systems, they are reviewed in terms of the safety parameter display system, decision-making support system, and procedure-tracking system. For the severe accident, the severe accident management guideline (SAMG) which is developed by Westinghouse is reviewed; the characteristics, structure, and logical flow of SAMG are studied. In addition, the critical parameters for severe accident, which are the basis for operators decision-making in severe accident management and are supplied to the operators and the technical support center, are reviewed, too

A Web-Based Learning Support System for Inquiry-Based Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Dong Won; Yao, Jingtao

The emergence of the Internet and Web technology makes it possible to implement the ideals of inquiry-based learning, in which students seek truth, information, or knowledge by questioning. Web-based learning support systems can provide a good framework for inquiry-based learning. This article presents a study on a Web-based learning support system called Online Treasure Hunt. The Web-based learning support system mainly consists of a teaching support subsystem, a learning support subsystem, and a treasure hunt game. The teaching support subsystem allows instructors to design their own inquiry-based learning environments. The learning support subsystem supports students' inquiry activities. The treasure hunt game enables students to investigate new knowledge, develop ideas, and review their findings. Online Treasure Hunt complies with a treasure hunt model. The treasure hunt model formalizes a general treasure hunt game to contain the learning strategies of inquiry-based learning. This Web-based learning support system empowered with the online-learning game and founded on the sound learning strategies furnishes students with the interactive and collaborative student-centered learning environment.

Real-time multi-task operators support system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang He; Peng Minjun; Wang Hao; Cheng Shouyu

2005-01-01

The development in computer software and hardware technology and information processing as well as the accumulation in the design and feedback from Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) operation created a good opportunity to develop an integrated Operator Support System. The Real-time Multi-task Operator Support System (RMOSS) has been built to support the operator's decision making process during normal and abnormal operations. RMOSS consists of five system subtasks such as Data Collection and Validation Task (DCVT), Operation Monitoring Task (OMT), Fault Diagnostic Task (FDT), Operation Guideline Task (OGT) and Human Machine Interface Task (HMIT). RMOSS uses rule-based expert system and Artificial Neural Network (ANN). The rule-based expert system is used to identify the predefined events in static conditions and track the operation guideline through data processing. In dynamic status, Back-Propagation Neural Network is adopted for fault diagnosis, which is trained with the Genetic Algorithm. Embedded real-time operation system VxWorks and its integrated environment Tornado II are used as the RMOSS software cross-development. VxGUI is used to design HMI. All of the task programs are designed in C language. The task tests and function evaluation of RMOSS have been done in one real-time full scope simulator. Evaluation results show that each task of RMOSS is capable of accomplishing its functions. (authors)

Instrumentation and control activities at the electric power research institute to support computerized support systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Naser, J.

1996-01-01

Most nuclear power plants in the United States are operating with their original analog I and C equipment. This equipment requires increasing maintenance efforts to sustain systems performance. Decreasing availability of replacement parts and support organization for analog technology accentuate obsolescence problems and resultant O and M cost increases. Modern technology, especially digital systems, offers improved functionality, performance, and reliability; solutions to obsolescence of equipment; reduction in O and M costs; and the potential to enhance safety. Digital systems, including computerized support systems, with their inherent advantages will be implemented only if reliable and cost-effective implementation and licensing acceptance is achieved and if the upgraded systems supports reduced power production costs. EPRI and its member utilities are working together under the Integrated I and C Upgrade Initiative to address I and C issues. (author). 23 refs

Aircraft interrogation and display system: A ground support equipment for digital flight systems

Science.gov (United States)

Glover, R. D.

1982-01-01

A microprocessor-based general purpose ground support equipment for electronic systems was developed. The hardware and software are designed to permit diverse applications in support of aircraft flight systems and simulation facilities. The implementation of the hardware, the structure of the software, describes the application of the system to an ongoing research aircraft project are described.

Classification of nuclear power plant operator support systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alpeev, A.S.

1994-01-01

The objective of this survey was to examine the general characteristics of modern nuclear power plant process monitoring/control systems and to apply developing technology (intellectual automation) in order to improve the man-machine interface. The support systems that implement each phase of the control function...information, assessment, decision-making, and implementation...were discussed, and where applicable, intellectual automation was applied to the support system. It was concluded that the application of intellectual automation, as well as other (undefined) possibilities for improving the man-machine interface, would relieve the operator of many routine activities and allow him to readily apply high potential to those poorly-formalized scenarios in which the operator's work can't be automated. It was also concluded that the development of such support systems would not be without problems, i.e. software certification, traning, and jurisdictional questions

SOCOM Training and Rehearsal System (STRS) Process Improvement and Decision Support System (DSS) Development

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Crossland, Neal; Broussard, Steve

2005-01-01

...) Process Improvement and Decision Support System (DSS) Development. Discussion sequence is: Why the study? Objectives; Areas of inquiry; Study products; Observations; Recommendations; Decision Support System.

Underwater Leidenfrost nanochemistry for creation of size-tailored zinc peroxide cancer nanotherapeutics

Science.gov (United States)

Elbahri, Mady; Abdelaziz, Ramzy; Disci-Zayed, Duygu; Homaeigohar, Shahin; Sosna, Justyna; Adam, Dieter; Kienle, Lorenz; Dankwort, Torben; Abdelaziz, Moheb

2017-05-01

The dynamic underwater chemistry seen in nature is inspiring for the next generation of eco-friendly nanochemistry. In this context, green synthesis of size-tailored nanoparticles in a facile and scalable manner via a dynamic process is an interesting challenge. Simulating the volcano-induced dynamic chemistry of the deep ocean, here we demonstrate the Leidenfrost dynamic chemistry occurring in an underwater overheated confined zone as a new tool for customized creation of nanoclusters of zinc peroxide. The hydrodynamic nature of the phenomenon ensures eruption of the nanoclusters towards a much colder region, giving rise to growth of monodisperse, size-tailored nanoclusters. Such nanoparticles are investigated in terms of their cytotoxicity on suspension and adherent cells to prove their applicability as cancer nanotherapeutics. Our research can pave the way for employment of the dynamic green nanochemistry in facile, scalable fabrication of size-tailored nanoparticles for biomedical applications.

A Hyperknowledge Framework of Decision Support Systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Chang, Ai-Mei; And Others

1994-01-01

Presents a hyperknowledge framework of decision support systems (DSS). This framework formalizes specifics about system functionality, representation of knowledge, navigation of the knowledge system, and user-interface traits as elements of a DSS environment that conforms closely to human cognitive processes in decision making. (Contains 52…

Support system for ATLAS distributed computing operations

CERN Document Server

Kishimoto, Tomoe; The ATLAS collaboration

2018-01-01

The ATLAS distributed computing system has allowed the experiment to successfully meet the challenges of LHC Run 2. In order for distributed computing to operate smoothly and efficiently, several support teams are organized in the ATLAS experiment. The ADCoS (ATLAS Distributed Computing Operation Shifts) is a dedicated group of shifters who follow and report failing jobs, failing data transfers between sites, degradation of ATLAS central computing services, and more. The DAST (Distributed Analysis Support Team) provides user support to resolve issues related to running distributed analysis on the grid. The CRC (Computing Run Coordinator) maintains a global view of the day-to-day operations. In this presentation, the status and operational experience of the support system for ATLAS distributed computing in LHC Run 2 will be reported. This report also includes operations experience from the grid site point of view, and an analysis of the errors that create the biggest waste of wallclock time. The report of oper...

IAEA activity on operator support systems in nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dounaev, V.; Fujita, Y.; Juslin, K.; Haugset, K.; Lux, I.; Naser, J.

1994-01-01

Various operator support systems for nuclear power plants are already operational or under development in the IAEA Member States. Operator support systems are based on intelligent data processing and, in addition to plant operation, they are also becoming more important for safety. A key feature of operator support systems is their availability to restructure data to increase its relevance for a given situation. This can improve the user's ability to identify plant mode, system state, and component state and to identify and diagnose faults. Operator support systems can also assist the user in planning and implementing corrective actions to improve the nuclear power plant's availability and safety. In September 1991, the IAEA Committee for Contractual Scientific Services approved the Co-ordinated Research Programme (CRP) on ''Operator Support Systems in Nuclear Power Plants'' in the framework of the Project ''Man-Machine Interface Studies''. The main objective of this programme is to provide guidance and technology transfer for the development and implementation of operator support systems. This includes the experience with human-machine interfaces and closely related issues such as instrumentation and control, the use of computers in nuclear power plants, and operator qualification. (author)

Thin tailored composite wing for civil tiltrotor

Science.gov (United States)

Rais-Rohani, Masoud

1994-01-01

The tiltrotor aircraft is a flight vehicle which combines the efficient low speed (i.e., take-off, landing, and hover) characteristics of a helicopter with the efficient cruise speed of a turboprop airplane. A well-known example of such vehicle is the Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey. The high cruise speed and range constraints placed on the civil tiltrotor require a relatively thin wing to increase the drag-divergence Mach number which translates into lower compressibility drag. It is required to reduce the wing maximum thickness-to-chord ratio t/c from 23% (i.e., V-22 wing) to 18%. While a reduction in wing thickness results in improved aerodynamic efficiency, it has an adverse effect on the wing structure and it tends to reduce structural stiffness. If ignored, the reduction in wing stiffness leads to susceptibility to aeroelastic and dynamic instabilities which may consequently cause a catastrophic failure. By taking advantage of the directional stiffness characteristics of composite materials the wing structure may be tailored to have the necessary stiffness, at a lower thickness, while keeping the weight low. The goal of this study is to design a wing structure for minimum weight subject to structural, dynamic and aeroelastic constraints. The structural constraints are in terms of strength and buckling allowables. The dynamic constraints are in terms of wing natural frequencies in vertical and horizontal bending and torsion. The aeroelastic constraints are in terms of frequency placement of the wing structure relative to those of the rotor system. The wing-rotor-pylon aeroelastic and dynamic interactions are limited in this design study by holding the cruise speed, rotor-pylon system, and wing geometric attributes fixed. To assure that the wing-rotor stability margins are maintained a more rigorous analysis based on a detailed model of the rotor system will need to ensue following the design study. The skin-stringer-rib type architecture is used for the wing

Argentina's operator support systems in nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Goldstein, M.; Palamidessi, H.

1996-01-01

The development of operator support systems for nuclear power plants started in Argentina a few years ago. Four systems are at present deployed or under development. The participation of utility personnel in the co-ordinated research program has helped in revising the current experience and in selecting and specifying the systems to be developed and the resources needed for their implementation. Main efforts will be aimed to the selection of those systems that can be more easily implemented, to improve the data retrieval and handling, to develop diverse supplies of software products and to promote the understanding of support systems among the potential end users. (author). 12 refs

Conservatism implications of shock test tailoring for multiple design environments

Science.gov (United States)

Baca, Thomas J.; Bell, R. Glenn; Robbins, Susan A.

1987-01-01

A method for analyzing shock conservation in test specifications that have been tailored to qualify a structure for multiple design environments is discussed. Shock test conservation is qualified for shock response spectra, shock intensity spectra and ranked peak acceleration data in terms of an Index of Conservation (IOC) and an Overtest Factor (OTF). The multi-environment conservation analysis addresses the issue of both absolute and average conservation. The method is demonstrated in a case where four laboratory tests have been specified to qualify a component which must survive seven different field environments. Final judgment of the tailored test specification is shown to require an understanding of the predominant failure modes of the test item.

Energy conservation through behavioral change. Examining the effectiveness of a tailor-made approach

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Abrahamse, W.

2007-12-06

Households constitute an important target group when it comes to encouraging energy conservation. This dissertation provides an overview of the effectiveness of interventions aimed at encouraging households to reduce their energy use through behavioral changes. It also provides more insight into the factors related to household energy use and conservation. Tailored interventions in particular appear to be effective in reducing energy consumption. Households were given tailored information about energy saving measures they could apply. They were asked to try and save 5% energy and the website indicated how much energy they could save with each measure to attain that goal. Households also received feedback about their energy savings. Households who received the combination of tailored information, goal setting and tailored feedback via the Internet saved 5%, while households in a control group used more energy. Households had adopted more energy-saving measures and had more knowledge of energy conservation, compared to the control group. Also, household energy consumption appeared to be mainly related to socio-demographic variables, such as income and household size. Energy savings appeared to be mainly related to individual factors like perceived behavioral control. If the aim is to encourage households to adopt more sustainable lifestyles, it is important to provide them with more insight into which energy saving options are most effective for them to conserve energy. In view of the annual energy reduction targets set by the Dutch government, a tailor-made approach via the Internet can be an important step in that direction.

Support for User Interfaces for Distributed Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Eychaner, Glenn; Niessner, Albert

2005-01-01

An extensible Java(TradeMark) software framework supports the construction and operation of graphical user interfaces (GUIs) for distributed computing systems typified by ground control systems that send commands to, and receive telemetric data from, spacecraft. Heretofore, such GUIs have been custom built for each new system at considerable expense. In contrast, the present framework affords generic capabilities that can be shared by different distributed systems. Dynamic class loading, reflection, and other run-time capabilities of the Java language and JavaBeans component architecture enable the creation of a GUI for each new distributed computing system with a minimum of custom effort. By use of this framework, GUI components in control panels and menus can send commands to a particular distributed system with a minimum of system-specific code. The framework receives, decodes, processes, and displays telemetry data; custom telemetry data handling can be added for a particular system. The framework supports saving and later restoration of users configurations of control panels and telemetry displays with a minimum of effort in writing system-specific code. GUIs constructed within this framework can be deployed in any operating system with a Java run-time environment, without recompilation or code changes.

Using Visualization in Cockpit Decision Support Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Aragon, Cecilia R.

2005-01-01

In order to safely operate their aircraft, pilots must make rapid decisions based on integrating and processing large amounts of heterogeneous information. Visual displays are often the most efficient method of presenting safety-critical data to pilots in real time. However, care must be taken to ensure the pilot is provided with the appropriate amount of information to make effective decisions and not become cognitively overloaded. The results of two usability studies of a prototype airflow hazard visualization cockpit decision support system are summarized. The studies demonstrate that such a system significantly improves the performance of helicopter pilots landing under turbulent conditions. Based on these results, design principles and implications for cockpit decision support systems using visualization are presented.

Tailoring the synthesis of supported Pd catalysts towards desired structure and size of metal particles.

Science.gov (United States)

Suresh, Gatla; Radnik, Jörg; Kalevaru, Venkata Narayana; Pohl, Marga-Martina; Schneider, Matthias; Lücke, Bernhard; Martin, Andreas; Madaan, Neetika; Brückner, Angelika

2010-05-14

In a systematic study, the influence of different preparation parameters on phase composition and size of metal crystallites and particles in Pd-Cu/TiO(2) and Pd-Sb/TiO(2) catalyst materials has been explored. Temperature and atmosphere of thermal pretreatment (pure He or 10% H(2)/He), nature of metal precursors (chlorides, nitrates or acetates) as well as of ammonium additives (ammonium sulfate, nitrate, carbonate) and urea were varied with the aim of tailoring the synthesis procedure for the preferential formation of metal particles with similar size and structure as observed recently in active catalysts after long-term equilibration under catalytic reaction conditions in acetoxylation of toluene to benzylacetate. Among the metal precursors and additives, the chloride metal precursors and (NH(4))(2)SO(4) were most suitable. Upon thermal pretreatment of Pd-Sb or Pd-Cu precursors, chloroamine complexes of Pd and Cu are formed, which decompose above 220 degrees C to metallic phases independent of the atmosphere. In He, metallic Pd particles were formed with both the co-components. In H(2)/He flow, Pd-Cu precursors were converted to core-shell particles with a Cu shell and a Pd core, while Sb(1)Pd(1) and Sb(7)Pd(20) alloy phases were formed in the presence of Sb. Metal crystallites of about 40 nm agglomerate to particles of up to 150 nm in He and to even larger size in H(2)/He.

Tailoring intervention procedures to routine primary health care practice; an ethnographic process evaluation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bruijnzeels Marc

2007-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Tailor-made approaches enable the uptake of interventions as they are seen as a way to overcome the incompatibility of general interventions with local knowledge about the organisation of routine medical practice and the relationship between the patients and the professionals in practice. Our case is the Quattro project which is a prevention programme for cardiovascular diseases in high-risk patients in primary health care centres in deprived neighbourhoods. This programme was implemented as a pragmatic trial and foresaw the importance of local knowledge in primary health care and internal, or locally made, guidelines. The aim of this paper is to show how this prevention programme, which could be tailored to routine care, was implemented in primary care. Methods An ethnographic design was used for this study. We observed and interviewed the researchers and the practice nurses. All the research documents, observations and transcribed interviews were analysed thematically. Results Our ethnographic process evaluation showed that the opportunity of tailoring intervention procedures to routine care in a pragmatic trial setting did not result in a well-organised and well-implemented prevention programme. In fact, the lack of standard protocols hindered the implementation of the intervention. Although it was not the purpose of this trial, a guideline was developed. Despite the fact that the developed guideline functioned as a tool, it did not result in the intervention being organised accordingly. However, the guideline did make tailoring the intervention possible. It provided the professionals with the key or the instructions needed to achieve organisational change and transform the existing interprofessional relations. Conclusion As tailor-made approaches are developed to enable the uptake of interventions in routine practice, they are facilitated by the brokering of tools such as guidelines. In our study, guidelines facilitated

Kinetically controlled synthesis of large-scale morphology-tailored silver nanostructures at low temperature

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Ling; Zhao, Yuda; Lin, Ziyuan; Gu, Fangyuan; Lau, Shu Ping; Li, Li; Chai, Yang

2015-08-01

Ag nanostructures are widely used in catalysis, energy conversion and chemical sensing. Morphology-tailored synthesis of Ag nanostructures is critical to tune physical and chemical properties. In this study, we develop a method for synthesizing the morphology-tailored Ag nanostructures in aqueous solution at a low temperature (45 °C). With the use of AgCl nanoparticles as the precursor, the growth kinetics of Ag nanostructures can be tuned with the pH value of solution and the concentration of Pd cubes which catalyze the reaction. Ascorbic acid and cetylpyridinium chloride are used as the mild reducing agent and capping agent in aqueous solution, respectively. High-yield Ag nanocubes, nanowires, right triangular bipyramids/cubes with twinned boundaries, and decahedra are successfully produced. Our method opens up a new environmentally-friendly and economical route to synthesize large-scale and morphology-tailored Ag nanostructures, which is significant to the controllable fabrication of Ag nanostructures and fundamental understanding of the growth kinetics.Ag nanostructures are widely used in catalysis, energy conversion and chemical sensing. Morphology-tailored synthesis of Ag nanostructures is critical to tune physical and chemical properties. In this study, we develop a method for synthesizing the morphology-tailored Ag nanostructures in aqueous solution at a low temperature (45 °C). With the use of AgCl nanoparticles as the precursor, the growth kinetics of Ag nanostructures can be tuned with the pH value of solution and the concentration of Pd cubes which catalyze the reaction. Ascorbic acid and cetylpyridinium chloride are used as the mild reducing agent and capping agent in aqueous solution, respectively. High-yield Ag nanocubes, nanowires, right triangular bipyramids/cubes with twinned boundaries, and decahedra are successfully produced. Our method opens up a new environmentally-friendly and economical route to synthesize large-scale and morphology-tailored

Fault-Tolerant Onboard Monitoring and Decision Support Systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lajic, Zoran

a crude and simple estimation of the actual sea state (Hs and Tz), information about the longitudinal hull girder loading, seakeeping performance of the ship, and decision support on how to operate the ship within acceptable limits. The system is able to identify critical forthcoming events and to give...... advice regarding speed and course changes to decrease the wave-induced loads. The SeaSense system is based on the combined use of a mathematical model and measurements from a set of sensors. The overall dependability of a shipboard monitoring and decision support system such as the SeaSense system can...

Developing Strategies for Waste Reduction by Means of Tailored Interventions in Santiago De Cuba

Science.gov (United States)

Tobias, Robert; Brugger, Adrian; Mosler, Hans-Joachim

2009-01-01

This article introduces an approach to tailoring behavior-change campaigns to target populations using the example of solid waste reduction in Santiago de Cuba. Tailoring is performed in the following steps: (1) Psychological constructs are selected to detect problems in performing the target behavior, and data are gathered on these constructs.…

The value of participatory development to support antimicrobial stewardship with a clinical decision support system

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Beerlage-de Jong, Nienke; Wentzel, Jobke; Hendrix, Ron; van Gemert-Pijnen, Lisette

2017-01-01

Background: Current clinical decision support systems (CDSSs) for antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs) are guideline- or expert-driven. They are focused on (clinical) content, not on supporting real-time workflow. Thus, CDSSs fail to optimally support prudent antimicrobial prescribing in daily

The value of participatory development to support antimicrobial stewardship with a clinical decision support system

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Beerlage-de Jong, Nienke; Wentzel, M.J.; Hendrix, Ron; van Gemert-Pijnen, Julia E.W.C.

Background Current clinical decision support systems (CDSSs) for antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs) are guideline- or expert-driven. They are focused on (clinical) content, not on supporting real-time workflow. Thus, CDSSs fail to optimally support prudent antimicrobial prescribing in daily

How Decision Support Systems Can Benefit from a Theory of Change Approach

Science.gov (United States)

Allen, Will; Cruz, Jennyffer; Warburton, Bruce

2017-06-01

Decision support systems are now mostly computer and internet-based information systems designed to support land managers with complex decision-making. However, there is concern that many environmental and agricultural decision support systems remain underutilized and ineffective. Recent efforts to improve decision support systems use have focused on enhancing stakeholder participation in their development, but a mismatch between stakeholders' expectations and the reality of decision support systems outputs continues to limit uptake. Additional challenges remain in problem-framing and evaluation. We propose using an outcomes-based approach called theory of change in conjunction with decision support systems development to support both wider problem-framing and outcomes-based monitoring and evaluation. The theory of change helps framing by placing the decision support systems within a wider context. It highlights how decision support systems use can "contribute" to long-term outcomes, and helps align decision support systems outputs with these larger goals. We illustrate the benefits of linking decision support systems development and application with a theory of change approach using an example of pest rabbit management in Australia. We develop a theory of change that outlines the activities required to achieve the outcomes desired from an effective rabbit management program, and two decision support systems that contribute to specific aspects of decision making in this wider problem context. Using a theory of change in this way should increase acceptance of the role of decision support systems by end-users, clarify their limitations and, importantly, increase effectiveness of rabbit management. The use of a theory of change should benefit those seeking to improve decision support systems design, use and, evaluation.

How Decision Support Systems Can Benefit from a Theory of Change Approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Allen, Will; Cruz, Jennyffer; Warburton, Bruce

2017-06-01

Decision support systems are now mostly computer and internet-based information systems designed to support land managers with complex decision-making. However, there is concern that many environmental and agricultural decision support systems remain underutilized and ineffective. Recent efforts to improve decision support systems use have focused on enhancing stakeholder participation in their development, but a mismatch between stakeholders' expectations and the reality of decision support systems outputs continues to limit uptake. Additional challenges remain in problem-framing and evaluation. We propose using an outcomes-based approach called theory of change in conjunction with decision support systems development to support both wider problem-framing and outcomes-based monitoring and evaluation. The theory of change helps framing by placing the decision support systems within a wider context. It highlights how decision support systems use can "contribute" to long-term outcomes, and helps align decision support systems outputs with these larger goals. We illustrate the benefits of linking decision support systems development and application with a theory of change approach using an example of pest rabbit management in Australia. We develop a theory of change that outlines the activities required to achieve the outcomes desired from an effective rabbit management program, and two decision support systems that contribute to specific aspects of decision making in this wider problem context. Using a theory of change in this way should increase acceptance of the role of decision support systems by end-users, clarify their limitations and, importantly, increase effectiveness of rabbit management. The use of a theory of change should benefit those seeking to improve decision support systems design, use and, evaluation.

Review of Operation and Maintenance Support Systems for Research Reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jin, Kyungho; Heo, Gyunyoung; Park, Jaekwan

2014-01-01

Operation support systems do not directly control the plant but it can aid decision making itself by obtaining and analyzing large amounts of data. Recently, the demand of research reactor is growing and the need for operation support systems is increasing, but it has not been applied for research reactors. This study analyzes operation and maintenance support systems of NPPs and suggests appropriate systems for research reactors based on analysis. In this paper, operation support systems for research reactors are suggested by comparing with those of power reactors. Currently, research reactors do not cover special systems in order to improve safety and operability in comparison with power reactors. Therefore we expect to improve worth to use by introducing appropriate systems for research reactors. In further research, we will develop an appropriate system such as applications or tools that can be applied to the research reactor

Stability design considerations for mirror support systems in ICF lasers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tietbohl, G.L.; Sommer, S.C.

1996-10-01

Some of the major components of laser systems used for Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF) are the large aperture mirrors which direct the path of the laser. These mirrors are typically supported by systems which consist of mirror mounts, mirror enclosures, superstructures, and foundations. Stability design considerations for the support systems of large aperture mirrors have been developed based on the experience of designing and evaluating similar systems at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL). Examples of the systems developed at LLNL include Nova, the Petawatt laser, Beamlet, and the National Ignition Facility (NIF). The structural design of support systems of large aperture mirrors has typically been controlled by stability considerations in order for the large laser system to meet its performance requirements for alignment and positioning. This paper will discuss the influence of stability considerations and will provide guidance on the structural design and evaluation of mirror support systems in ICF lasers so that this information can be used on similar systems

Patient factors that influence clinicians' decision making in self-management support : A clinical vignette study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bos-Touwen, Irene D.; Trappenburg, Jaap C A; Van Der Wulp, Ineke; Schuurmans, Marieke J.; De Wit, Niek J.

2017-01-01

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Self-management support is an integral part of current chronic care guidelines. The success of self-management interventions varies between individual patients, suggesting a need for tailored self-management support. Understanding the role of patient factors in the current

Support for Quality Assurance in End-User Systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Klepper, Robert; McKenna, Edward G.

1989-01-01

Suggests an approach that organizations can take to provide centralized support services for quality assurance in end-user information systems, based on the experiences of a support group at Citicorp Mortgage, Inc. The functions of the support group include user education, software selection, and assistance in testing, implementation, and support…

Tailorable stimulated Brillouin scattering in nanoscale silicon waveguides

Science.gov (United States)

Shin, Heedeuk; Qiu, Wenjun; Jarecki, Robert; Cox, Jonathan A.; Olsson, Roy H.; Starbuck, Andrew; Wang, Zheng; Rakich, Peter T.

2013-01-01

Nanoscale modal confinement is known to radically enhance the effect of intrinsic Kerr and Raman nonlinearities within nanophotonic silicon waveguides. By contrast, stimulated Brillouin-scattering nonlinearities, which involve coherent coupling between guided photon and phonon modes, are stifled in conventional nanophotonics, preventing the realization of a host of Brillouin-based signal-processing technologies in silicon. Here we demonstrate stimulated Brillouin scattering in silicon waveguides, for the first time, through a new class of hybrid photonic–phononic waveguides. Tailorable travelling-wave forward-stimulated Brillouin scattering is realized—with over 1,000 times larger nonlinearity than reported in previous systems—yielding strong Brillouin coupling to phonons from 1 to 18 GHz. Experiments show that radiation pressures, produced by subwavelength modal confinement, yield enhancement of Brillouin nonlinearity beyond those of material nonlinearity alone. In addition, such enhanced and wideband coherent phonon emission paves the way towards the hybridization of silicon photonics, microelectromechanical systems and CMOS signal-processing technologies on chip. PMID:23739586

Can Deterrence Be Tailored? Strategic Forum, Number 225, January 2007

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Bunn, M. E

2007-01-01

.... The Bush administration has outlined a concept for tailored deterrence to address the distinctive challenges posed by advanced military competitors, regional powers armed with weapons of mass destruction (WMD...

Intelligent decision support system for operators of the supply ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Intelligent decision support system for operators of the supply department of oil and gas extracting industry. ... PROMOTING ACCESS TO AFRICAN RESEARCH ... abnormal situations, pre-crash sensing, industrial drilling, decision-making support systems. Full Text: EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT

Expanding the research area of behavior change support systems

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Gemert-Pijnen, Julia E.W.C.; Reitberger, Wolfgang; Langrial, Sitwat; Ploderer, Bernd; Oinas-Kukkonen, Harri; Berkovsky, Shlomo; Freyne, Jill

2013-01-01

The First International Workshop on Behavior Change Support Systems attracted a great research interest. The selected papers focused on abstraction, implementation and evaluation of Behavior Change Support Systems. The workshop is an evidence of how researchers from around the globe have their own

Design and Implementation of Company Tailored Automated Material Handling

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Langer, Gilad; Bilberg, Arne

1996-01-01

This article focuses on the problems of analysing automation of material handling systems in order to develop an efficient automated solution that is specifically tailored to the company. The research has resulted in development of new methods for evaluating factory automation from design...... to implementation. The goals of the research were to analyse and evaluate automation in order to obtain an advantageous combination of human and automated resources. The idea is to asses different solutions in a virtual environment, where experiments and analyses can be performed so that the company can justify...... for their application with computer aided information processing tools. The framework is named the "Automated Material Handling (AMH) Preference GuideLine". The research has been carried out in close co-operation with Danish and European industry, where implementations of automation can be referred to. It is our...

Need for Cost Optimization of Space Life Support Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Harry W.; Anderson, Grant

2017-01-01

As the nation plans manned missions that go far beyond Earth orbit to Mars, there is an urgent need for a robust, disciplined systems engineering methodology that can identify an optimized Environmental Control and Life Support (ECLSS) architecture for long duration deep space missions. But unlike the previously used Equivalent System Mass (ESM), the method must be inclusive of all driving parameters and emphasize the economic analysis of life support system design. The key parameter for this analysis is Life Cycle Cost (LCC). LCC takes into account the cost for development and qualification of the system, launch costs, operational costs, maintenance costs and all other relevant and associated costs. Additionally, an effective methodology must consider system technical performance, safety, reliability, maintainability, crew time, and other factors that could affect the overall merit of the life support system.

Decision support system for containment and release management

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oosterhuis, B [Twente Univ., Enschede (Netherlands). Computer Science Dept.

1995-09-01

The Containment and Release Management project was carried out within the Reinforced Concerted Action Programme for Accident Management Support and partly financed by the European Union. In this report a prototype of an accident management support system is presented. The support system integrates several concepts from accident management research, like safety objective trees, severe accident phenomena, calculation models and an emergency response data system. These concepts are provided by the prototype in such a way that the decision making process of accident management is supported. The prototype application is demonstrated by process data taken from a severe accident scenario for a pressurized water reactor (PWR) that was simulated with the thermohydraulic computer program MAAP. The prototype was derived from a decision support framework based on a decision theory. For established and innovative concepts from accident management research it is pointed out in which way these concepts can support accident management and how these concepts can be integrated. This approach is generic in two ways; it applies to both pressurized and boiling water reactors and it applies to both in vessel management and containment and release management. The prototype application was developed in Multimedia Toolbox 3.0 and requires at least a 386 PC with 4 MB memory, 6 MB free disk space and MS Windows 3.1. (orig.).

Decision support system for containment and release management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oosterhuis, B.

1995-09-01

The Containment and Release Management project was carried out within the Reinforced Concerted Action Programme for Accident Management Support and partly financed by the European Union. In this report a prototype of an accident management support system is presented. The support system integrates several concepts from accident management research, like safety objective trees, severe accident phenomena, calculation models and an emergency response data system. These concepts are provided by the prototype in such a way that the decision making process of accident management is supported. The prototype application is demonstrated by process data taken from a severe accident scenario for a pressurized water reactor (PWR) that was simulated with the thermohydraulic computer program MAAP. The prototype was derived from a decision support framework based on a decision theory. For established and innovative concepts from accident management research it is pointed out in which way these concepts can support accident management and how these concepts can be integrated. This approach is generic in two ways; it applies to both pressurized and boiling water reactors and it applies to both in vessel management and containment and release management. The prototype application was developed in Multimedia Toolbox 3.0 and requires at least a 386 PC with 4 MB memory, 6 MB free disk space and MS Windows 3.1. (orig.)

Remote mobile communication in safety support system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Inagaki, Kanji; Kobayashi, Hiroyuki; Hatanaka, Takahiro; Sakuma, Akira; Fukumoto, Akira; Ikeda, Jun

1999-01-01

Safety Support System (SSS) is a computerized operator support system for nuclear power plants, which is now under development. The concept of SSS covers 1) earlier detection of failure symptom and prediction of its influence to the plant operation, 2) improved transparency and robustness of plant control systems, 3) advanced human-machine interface and communication. The authors have been working on the third concept and proposed a remote mobile communication system called Plant Communication System (PCS). PCS aims to realize convenient communication between main control room and other areas such as plant local areas and site offices, using Personal Handyphone System (PHS) and wireless LAN (Local Area Network). PCS can transmit not only data but also graphic displays and dynamic video displays between the main control room and plant local areas. MPEG4 (Moving Picture Experts Group 4) technology is utilized in video data compression and decompression. The authors have developed the special multiplexing unit that connects PHS Cell Stations (CSs) and exiting coaxial cables. Voice recognition and announcement capability is also realized in the system, which enables verbal retrieval of information in the computer systems in the main control room from local areas. (author)

[Habitability and biological life support systems for man].

Science.gov (United States)

Gazenko, O G; Grigor'ev, A I; Meleshko, G I; Shepelev, E Ia

1990-01-01

This paper discusses general concepts and specific details of the habitability of space stations and planetary bases completely isolated from the Earth for long periods of time. It emphasizes inadequacy of the present-day knowledge about natural conditions that provide a biologically acceptable environment on the Earth as well as lack of information about life support systems as a source of consumables (oxygen, water, food) and a tool for waste management. The habitability of advanced space vehicles is closely related to closed bioregenerative systems used as life support systems.

A review of lateral driver support systems

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Tideman, Martijn; van der Voort, Mascha C.; van Arem, Bart; Tillema, Frans; Dailey, D.

2007-01-01

Lateral driver support systems have the potential to reduce the number of accidents associated with -both intentional and unintentional -lane departures. Additionally, such systems may increase driving comfort and stimulate a more efficient traffic flow, thereby reducing traffic emissions and the

Evolution of Decision Support Systems Research Field in Numbers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ana-Maria SUDUC

2010-01-01

Full Text Available The scientific production in a certain field shows, in great extent, the research interests in that field. Decision Support Systems are a particular class of information systems which are gaining more popularity in various domains. In order to identify the evolution in time of the publications number, authors, subjects, publications in the Decision Support Systems (DSS field, and therefore the scientific world interest for this field, in November 2010 there have been organized a series of queries on three major international scientific databases: ScienceDirect, IEEE Xplore Digital Library and ACM Digital Library. The results presented in this paper shows that, even the decision support systems research field started in 1960s, the interests for this type of systems grew exponentially with each year in the last decades.

Integrated logistic support analysis system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carnicero Iniguez, E.J.; Garcia de la Sen, R.

1993-01-01

Integrating logic support into a system results in a large volume of information having to be managed which can only be achieved with the help of computer applications. Both past experience and growing needs in such tasks have led Emperesarios Agrupados to undertake an ambitious development project which is described in this paper. (author)

Tailoring the porosity and shrinkage of extruded MgO support tubes for oxygen separation membranes by thermoplastic feedstock development

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kothanda Ramachandran, Dhavanesan; Kaiser, Andreas; Glasscock, Julie

for co-extrusion and co-sintering of a porous Magnesium oxide (MgO) support with a thin film of cerium gadolinium oxide (Ce0.9Gd0.1O1.95-δ, CGO) as active oxygen transport membrane layer has been developed using a thermoplastic ceramic system and graphite as pore former. The feedstocks have been...

Exploring the perspectives of clinical professionals and support staff on implementing supported self-management for asthma in UK general practice: an IMP2ART qualitative study.

Science.gov (United States)

Morrow, Susan; Daines, Luke; Wiener-Ogilvie, Sharon; Steed, Liz; McKee, Lorna; Caress, Ann-Louise; Taylor, Stephanie J C; Pinnock, Hilary

2017-07-18

Despite an overwhelming evidence base, supported self-management of asthma is poorly implemented into routine practice. Strategies for implementation must address organisational routines, as well as provide resources for patients and training to improve professionals' skills. We aimed to explore the priority that primary care practices attach to asthma self-management, to describe their existing asthma management routines, and to generate innovative implementation strategies. We recruited 33 participants (23 general practitioners; seven nurses; three administrative staff) from 14 general practices. The 12 interviews and three focus groups were transcribed, coded and analysed thematically. Supported self-management was largely a nurse-led task within clinic-based annual reviews. Barriers included poor attendance at asthma clinics, lack of time, demarcation of roles, limited access to a range of tailored resources, and competing agendas in consultation, often due to multimorbidity. Suggestions for initiatives to improve the provision of supported self-management included emphasising the evidence for benefit (to influence prioritisation), improving teamwork (including team-based education), organisational strategies (including remote consulting) which need to fit within existing practice routines. Technology offers some potential solutions (e.g., improved templates, 'app'-based plans), but must be integrated with the practice information technology systems. Building on these insights, we will now develop a theoretically-based implementation strategy that will address patient, professional, and organisational buy-in, provide team-based education and offer a range of practical options and tools, which can be adapted and integrated within existing routines of individual practices.OVERCOMING THE ORGANISATIONAL BARRIERS TO IMPLEMENTING ASTHMA SELF-MANAGEMENT: Understanding the routines of primary care practices can suggest strategies to implement supported self

SraTailor: graphical user interface software for processing and visualizing ChIP-seq data.

Science.gov (United States)

Oki, Shinya; Maehara, Kazumitsu; Ohkawa, Yasuyuki; Meno, Chikara

2014-12-01

Raw data from ChIP-seq (chromatin immunoprecipitation combined with massively parallel DNA sequencing) experiments are deposited in public databases as SRAs (Sequence Read Archives) that are publically available to all researchers. However, to graphically visualize ChIP-seq data of interest, the corresponding SRAs must be downloaded and converted into BigWig format, a process that involves complicated command-line processing. This task requires users to possess skill with script languages and sequence data processing, a requirement that prevents a wide range of biologists from exploiting SRAs. To address these challenges, we developed SraTailor, a GUI (Graphical User Interface) software package that automatically converts an SRA into a BigWig-formatted file. Simplicity of use is one of the most notable features of SraTailor: entering an accession number of an SRA and clicking the mouse are the only steps required to obtain BigWig-formatted files and to graphically visualize the extents of reads at given loci. SraTailor is also able to make peak calls, generate files of other formats, process users' own data, and accept various command-line-like options. Therefore, this software makes ChIP-seq data fully exploitable by a wide range of biologists. SraTailor is freely available at http://www.devbio.med.kyushu-u.ac.jp/sra_tailor/, and runs on both Mac and Windows machines. © 2014 The Authors Genes to Cells © 2014 by the Molecular Biology Society of Japan and Wiley Publishing Asia Pty Ltd.

Theory, Software and Testing Examples for Decision Support Systems

OpenAIRE

Lewandowski, A.; Wierzbicki, A.P.

1987-01-01

Research in methodology of Decision Support Systems is one of the activities within the System and Decision Sciences Program which was initiated seven years ago and is still in the center of interests of SDS. During these years several methodological approaches and software tools have been developed; among others the DIDAS (Dynamic Interactive Decision Analysis and Support) and SCDAS (Selection Committed Decision Analysis and Support). Both methodologies gained a certain level of popularity a...

Generic Modeling of a Life Support System for Process Technology Comparison

Science.gov (United States)

Ferrall, J. F.; Seshan, P. K.; Rohatgi, N. K.; Ganapathi, G. B.

1993-01-01

This paper describes a simulation model called the Life Support Systems Analysis Simulation Tool (LiSSA-ST), the spreadsheet program called the Life Support Systems Analysis Trade Tool (LiSSA-TT), and the Generic Modular Flow Schematic (GMFS) modeling technique. Results of using the LiSSA-ST and the LiSSA-TT will be presented for comparing life support system and process technology options for a Lunar Base with a crew size of 4 and mission lengths of 90 and 600 days. System configurations to minimize the life support system weight and power are explored.

Interprofessional practice in primary care: development of a tailored process model

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stans SEA

2013-04-01

Full Text Available Steffy EA Stans, JG Anita Stevens, Anna JHM Beurskens Research Center of Autonomy and Participation for Persons with a Chronic Illness, Zuyd University of Applied Sciences, Heerlen, The Netherlands Purpose: This study investigated the improvement of interprofessional practice in primary care by performing the first three steps of the implementation model described by Grol et al. This article describes the targets for improvement in a setting for children with complex care needs (step 1, the identification of barriers and facilitators influencing interprofessional practice (step 2, and the development of a tailored interprofessional process model (step 3. Methods: In step 2, thirteen qualitative semistructured interviews were held with several stakeholders, including parents of children, an occupational therapist, a speech and language therapist, a physical therapist, the manager of the team, two general practitioners, a psychologist, and a primary school teacher. The data were analyzed using directed content analysis and using the domains of the Chronic Care Model as a framework. In step 3, a project group was formed to develop helpful strategies, including the development of an interprofessional process through process mapping. Results: In step 2, it was found that the most important barriers to implementing interprofessional practice related to the lack of structure in the care process. A process model for interprofessional primary care was developed for the target group. Conclusion: The lack of a shared view of what is involved in the process of interprofessional practice was the most important barrier to its successful implementation. It is suggested that the tailored process developed, supported with the appropriate tools, may provide both professional staff and their clients, in this setting but also in other areas of primary care, with insight to the care process and a clear representation of "who should do what, when, and how." Keywords

Understanding the impact of graphene sheet tailoring on the ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Tailoring the channel decreases mobility and transmission probability to a great ... AGNR was used throughout the text so N denotes the number of dimer lines. Figure 2. .... ber of dimer lines and z is a positive integer) and through local density ...

Analysis, design and elastic tailoring of composite rotor blades

Science.gov (United States)

Rehfield, Lawrence W.; Atilgan, Ali R.

1987-01-01

The development of structural models for composite rotor blades is summarized. The models are intended for use in design analysis for the purpose of exploring the potential of elastic tailoring. The research was performed at the Center for Rotary Wing Aircraft Technology.

Panorama of Recommender Systems to Support Learning

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Drachsler, Hendrik; Verbert, Katrien; Santos, Olga C.; Manouselis, Nikos

2015-01-01

This chapter presents an analysis of recommender systems in TechnologyEnhanced Learning along their 15 years existence (2000-2014). All recommender systems considered for the review aim to support educational stakeholders by personalising the learning process. In this meta-review 82 recommender

Nutritional support for the infant's immune system

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Niers, L.; Stasse-Wolthuis, M.; Rombouts, F.M.; Rijkers, G.T.

2007-01-01

Newborn babies possess a functional but immature immune system as a defense against a world teeming with microorganisms. Breast milk contains a number of biological, active compounds that support the infant's immune system. These include secretory immunoglobulin A (IgA), which confers specific

A SWOT analysis of Planning Support Systems

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Vonk, G.; Geertman, S.; Schot, P.P.

2007-01-01

Insight into the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) of planning support systems (PSS) is fragmented between users and system developers. The lack of combined insights blocks development in the right direction and makes potential users hesitant to apply PSS in planning. This

Enabling high speed friction stir welding of aluminum tailor welded blanks

Science.gov (United States)

Hovanski, Yuri

Current welding technologies for production of aluminum tailor-welded blanks (TWBs) are utilized in low-volume and niche applications, and have yet to be scaled for the high-volume vehicle market. This study targeted further weight reduction, part reduction, and cost savings by enabling tailor-welded blank technology for aluminum alloys at high-volumes. While friction stir welding (FSW) has traditionally been applied at linear velocities less than one meter per minute, high volume production applications demand the process be extended to higher velocities more amenable to cost sensitive production environments. Unfortunately, weld parameters and performance developed and characterized at low to moderate welding velocities do not directly translate to high speed linear friction stir welding. Therefore, in order to facilitate production of high volume aluminum FSW components, parameters were developed with a minimum welding velocity of three meters per minute. With an emphasis on weld quality, welded blanks were evaluated for post-weld formability using a combination of numerical and experimental methods. Evaluation across scales was ultimately validated by stamping full-size production door inner panels made from dissimilar thickness aluminum tailor-welded blanks, which provided validation of the numerical and experimental analysis of laboratory scale tests.

Tailoring the chirality of light emission with spherical Si-based antennas.

Science.gov (United States)

Zambrana-Puyalto, Xavier; Bonod, Nicolas

2016-05-21

Chirality of light is of fundamental importance in several enabling technologies with growing applications in life sciences, chemistry and photodetection. Recently, some attention has been focused on chiral quantum emitters. Consequently, optical antennas which are able to tailor the chirality of light emission are needed. Spherical nanoresonators such as colloids are of particular interest to design optical antennas since they can be synthesized at a large scale and they exhibit good optical properties. Here, we show that these colloids can be used to tailor the chirality of a chiral emitter. To this purpose, we derive an analytic formalism to model the interaction between a chiral emitter and a spherical resonator. We then compare the performances of metallic and dielectric spherical antennas to tailor the chirality of light emission. It is seen that, due to their strong electric dipolar response, metallic spherical nanoparticles spoil the chirality of light emission by yielding achiral fields. In contrast, thanks to the combined excitation of electric and magnetic modes, dielectric Si-based particles feature the ability to inhibit or to boost the chirality of light emission. Finally, it is shown that dual modes in dielectric antennas preserve the chirality of light emission.

Cultural targeting and tailoring of shared decision making technology: a theoretical framework for improving the effectiveness of patient decision aids in culturally diverse groups.

Science.gov (United States)

Alden, Dana L; Friend, John; Schapira, Marilyn; Stiggelbout, Anne

2014-03-01

Patient decision aids are known to positively impact outcomes critical to shared decision making (SDM), such as gist knowledge and decision preparedness. However, research on the potential improvement of these and other important outcomes through cultural targeting and tailoring of decision aids is very limited. This is the case despite extensive evidence supporting use of cultural targeting and tailoring to improve the effectiveness of health communications. Building on prominent psychological theory, we propose a two-stage framework incorporating cultural concepts into the design process for screening and treatment decision aids. The first phase recommends use of cultural constructs, such as collectivism and individualism, to differentially target patients whose cultures are known to vary on these dimensions. Decision aid targeting is operationalized through use of symbols and values that appeal to members of the given culture. Content dimensions within decision aids that appear particularly appropriate for targeting include surface level visual characteristics, language, beliefs, attitudes and values. The second phase of the framework is based on evidence that individuals vary in terms of how strongly cultural norms influence their approach to problem solving and decision making. In particular, the framework hypothesizes that differences in terms of access to cultural mindsets (e.g., access to interdependent versus independent self) can be measured up front and used to tailor decision aids. Thus, the second phase in the framework emphasizes the importance of not only targeting decision aid content, but also tailoring the information to the individual based on measurement of how strongly he/she is connected to dominant cultural mindsets. Overall, the framework provides a theory-based guide for researchers and practitioners who are interested in using cultural targeting and tailoring to develop and test decision aids that move beyond a "one-size fits all" approach

The design of intelligent support systems for nuclear reactor operators

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bernard, J.A.

1992-01-01

This paper identifies factors relevant to the design of intelligent support systems and their use for the provision of real-time diagnostic information. As such, it constitutes a followup to the state-of-the-art review that was previously published by Bernard and Washio on the utilization of expert systems within the nuclear industry. Some major differences between intelligent-support tools and conventional expert systems are enumerated. In summary, conventional expert systems that encode experimental knowledge in production rules are not suitable vehicle for the creation of operator support systems. The principal difficulty is the need for real-time operation. This in turn means that intelligent support systems will have knowledge bases derived from temporally accurate plant models, inference engines that permit revisions in the search process to accommodate revised data, and man-machine interfaces that do not require any human input. Such systems will be heavily instrumented, and the associated knowledge bases will require a hierarchical organization to emulate human approaches to analysis

PULSED MODE LASER CUTTING OF SHEETS FOR TAILORED BLANKS

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bagger, Claus; Olsen, Flemming Ove

1999-01-01

This paper describes how the laser cutting process can be optimised in such a way that the cut sheets can subsequently be used to laser weld tailored blanks. In a number of systematic laboratory experiments the effect of cutting speed, assist gas pressure, average laser power and pulse energy...... item for parameter optimisation of laser cut sheets used for tailored blanks. It was concluded that high quality cut edges with a squareness as small as 0.015 mm may be obtained. Such edges are well suited for subsequent laser welding....... was analysed. For quality assessment the squareness, roughness and dross attachment of laser cut blanks were measured. In all tests, the medium strength steel GA 260 with a thickness of 1.8 mm was used. In this work it has been successfully demonstrated that the squareness of a cut can be used as a quality...

Multiple soliton self-frequency shift cancellations in a temporally tailored photonic crystal fiber

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Liu, Lai; Kang, Zhe; Li, Qing; Gao, Xuejian; Qin, Guanshi, E-mail: qings@jlu.edu.cn, E-mail: wpqin@jlu.edu.cn; Qin, Weiping, E-mail: qings@jlu.edu.cn, E-mail: wpqin@jlu.edu.cn [State Key Laboratory on Integrated Optoelectronics, College of Electronic Science and Engineering, Jilin University, 2699 Qianjin Street, Changchun 130012 (China); Liao, Meisong; Hu, Lili [Key Laboratory of Materials for High Power Laser, Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201800 (China); Ohishi, Yasutake [Research Center for Advanced Photon Technology, Toyota Technological Institute, 2-12-1 Hisakata, Tempaku, Nagoya 468-8511 (Japan)

2014-11-03

We report the generation of multiple soliton self-frequency shift cancellations in a temporally tailored tellurite photonic crystal fiber (PCF). The temporally regulated group velocity dispersion (GVD) is generated in the fiber by soliton induced optical Kerr effect. Two red-shifted dispersive waves spring up when two Raman solitons meet their own second zero-dispersion-wavelengths in the PCF. These results show how, through temporally tailored GVD, nonlinearities can be harnessed to generate unexpected effects.

A framework for operator support systems for CANDU

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lupton, L.R.; Lipsett, J.J.; Shah, R.R.

1989-11-01

The size and complexity of nuclear power plants has increased significantly in the last 20 years. There is a general agreement that both plant safety and availability can be enhanced by providing the operator with more operational support if than can be done without overloading him/her with unnecessary information. Recent advances in computer technology provide opportunities for implementing operator support systems that are significantly different from the ones based on the more conventional technologies used in plant control rooms. In particular, artificial intelligence and the related technologies will play a major role in the development of innovative methods for information processing and presentation. Our approach to these technologies is that they must be integrated into the overall management and control philosophy of the plant and are not to be treated as vehicles to implement point solutions. The underlying philosophy behind this approach and the design objectives and goals for the CANDU 3 control centre are discussed in this paper. Operator support systems will integrate into the overall control philosophy by complementing the operator. There is also a role for such systems in assisting the operator to be a situation manager, organizing, managing and planning the running of the plant. Four support systems that incorporate the underlying philosophy are described

A framework for operator support systems for CANDU

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lupton, L.R.; Lipsett, J.J.; Shah, R.R.

1990-01-01

The size and complexity of nuclear power plants has increased significantly in the last 20 years. There is a general agreement that both plant safety and availability can be enhanced by providing the operator with more operational support if that can be cone without overloading him/her with unnecessary information. Recent advances in computer technology provide opportunities for implementing operator support systems that are significantly different from the ones based on the more conventional technologies used in plant control rooms. In particular, artificial intelligence (AI) and the related technologies will play a major role in the development of innovative methods for information processing and presentation. Our approach to these technologies is that they must be integrated into the overall management and control philosophy of the plant and are not to be treated as vehicles to implement point solutions. The underlying philosophy behind this approach and the design objectives and goals for the CANDU 3 control centre are discussed in this paper. Operator support systems will integrate into the overall controll philosophy by complementing the operator. There is also a role for such systems in assisting the operator be a 'situation manager' organizing, managing and planning the running of the plant. Four support systems that invorporate the underlying philosophy are described

Tailoring of magnetic anisotropy of Fe-rich microwires by stress induced anisotropy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhukov, A.; Zhukova, V.; Larin, V.; Gonzalez, J.

2006-01-01

We report on tailoring of magnetic properties and GMI of Fe 69 B 12 Si 14 C 5 glass-coated microwires by stress annealing. The induced magnetic anisotropy field depend on temperature and time of annealing and applied stress. At certain conditions considerable GMI effect (up to 65%) has been achieved. Application of the tensile stress drastically affects the shape of the hysteresis loop of stress-annealed sample and its GMI effect. In this way the shape of the hysteresis loop and GMI effect can by tailored by controllable way

Tailored Cloze: Improved with Classical Item Analysis Techniques.

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, James Dean

1988-01-01

The reliability and validity of a cloze procedure used as an English-as-a-second-language (ESL) test in China were improved by applying traditional item analysis and selection techniques. The 'best' test items were chosen on the basis of item facility and discrimination indices, and were administered as a 'tailored cloze.' 29 references listed.…

Tailor cutting of crystalline solar cells by laser micro jet

Science.gov (United States)

Bruckert, F.; Pilat, E.; Piron, P.; Torres, P.; Carron, B.; Richerzhagen, B.; Pirot, M.; Monna, R.

2012-03-01

Coupling a laser into a hair thin water micro jet (Laser Micro Jet, LMJ) for cutting applications offers a wide range of processes that are quite unique. As the laser beam is guided by internal reflections inside of a liquid cylinder, the cuts are naturally straight and do not reflect any divergence as otherwise occurs with an unguided laser beam. Furthermore, having a liquid media at the point of contact ensures a fast removal of heat and eventual debris ensuring clean cuts, which are free of any burrs. Many applications have indeed been developed for a large variety of materials, which are as different as e.g. diamond, silicon, aluminum, ceramic and hard metals. The photovoltaic industry has enjoyed in the last decades tremendous growth rates, which are still projected into the future. We focus here on the segment of Building Integrated PV (BIPV), which requests tailored solutions to actual buildings and not-one-fits-it-all standardized modules. Having the option to tailor cut solar cells opens a new field of BIPV applications. For the first time, finished crystalline solar cells have been LMJ cut into predetermined shapes. First results show that the cut is clean and neat. Preliminary solar performance measurements are positive. This opens a new avenue of tailored made modules instead of having to rely on the one-fits-alloy approach used so far.

Material and Thickness Grading for Aeroelastic Tailoring of the Common Research Model Wing Box

Science.gov (United States)

Stanford, Bret K.; Jutte, Christine V.

2014-01-01

This work quantifies the potential aeroelastic benefits of tailoring a full-scale wing box structure using tailored thickness distributions, material distributions, or both simultaneously. These tailoring schemes are considered for the wing skins, the spars, and the ribs. Material grading utilizes a spatially-continuous blend of two metals: Al and Al+SiC. Thicknesses and material fraction variables are specified at the 4 corners of the wing box, and a bilinear interpolation is used to compute these parameters for the interior of the planform. Pareto fronts detailing the conflict between static aeroelastic stresses and dynamic flutter boundaries are computed with a genetic algorithm. In some cases, a true material grading is found to be superior to a single-material structure.

Personally tailored activities for improving psychosocial outcomes for people with dementia in long-term care.

Science.gov (United States)

Möhler, Ralph; Renom, Anna; Renom, Helena; Meyer, Gabriele

2018-02-13

People with dementia who are being cared for in long-term care settings are often not engaged in meaningful activities. Offering them activities which are tailored to their individual interests and preferences might improve their quality of life and reduce challenging behaviour. ∙ To assess the effects of personally tailored activities on psychosocial outcomes for people with dementia living in long-term care facilities.∙ To describe the components of the interventions.∙ To describe conditions which enhance the effectiveness of personally tailored activities in this setting. We searched ALOIS, the Cochrane Dementia and Cognitive Improvement Group's Specialized Register, on 16 June 2017 using the terms: personally tailored OR individualized OR individualised OR individual OR person-centred OR meaningful OR personhood OR involvement OR engagement OR engaging OR identity. We also performed additional searches in MEDLINE (Ovid SP), Embase (Ovid SP), PsycINFO (Ovid SP), CINAHL (EBSCOhost), Web of Science (ISI Web of Science), ClinicalTrials.gov, and the World Health Organization (WHO) ICTRP, to ensure that the search for the review was as up to date and as comprehensive as possible. We included randomised controlled trials and controlled clinical trials offering personally tailored activities. All interventions included an assessment of the participants' present or past preferences for, or interests in, particular activities as a basis for an individual activity plan. Control groups received either usual care or an active control intervention. Two authors independently checked the articles for inclusion, extracted data and assessed the methodological quality of included studies. For all studies, we assessed the risk of selection bias, performance bias, attrition bias and detection bias. In case of missing information, we contacted the study authors. We included eight studies with 957 participants. The mean age of participants in the studies ranged from 78 to 88

Panorama of recommender systems to support learning

OpenAIRE

Drachsler, Hendrik; Verbert, Katrien; Santos, Olga; Manouselis, Nikos

2015-01-01

This chapter presents an analysis of recommender systems in Technology-Enhanced Learning along their 15 years existence (2000-2014). All recommender systems considered for the review aim to support educational stakeholders by personalising the learning process. In this meta-review 82 recommender systems from 35 different countries have been investigated and categorised according to a given classification framework. The reviewed systems have been classified into 7 clusters according to their c...

BASIC STUDY ON TAILORMADE BRAKING SUPPORT SYSTEM

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Toshiya HIROSE, M.S.

2004-01-01

This research reviewed the construction of models of a Tailormade Braking Support System (TBSS for braking to stop vehicles and the evaluation of drivers. As a result, the following conclusions were drawn. (1 Braking factors were found to change in the period from the start of braking to stopping; (2 Changes in braking factors can be logically incorporated into the control elements of braking support system; (3 Readymade Driver Model is effective as a model to be incorporated into the base system of TBSS; (4 Tailormade Driver Model built on Neural Network is effective as a main model to construct TBSS; (5 As for TBSS, both subjective and objective ratings on the timing and magnitude of braking are favorable, and its safety and sense of security are improved.

Structural Integration of Sensors/Actuators by Laser Beam Melting for Tailored Smart Components

Science.gov (United States)

Töppel, Thomas; Lausch, Holger; Brand, Michael; Hensel, Eric; Arnold, Michael; Rotsch, Christian

2018-03-01

Laser beam melting (LBM), an additive laser powder bed fusion technology, enables the structural integration of temperature-sensitive sensors and actuators in complex monolithic metallic structures. The objective is to embed a functional component inside a metal part without losing its functionality by overheating. The first part of this paper addresses the development of a new process chain for bonded embedding of temperature-sensitive sensor/actuator systems by LBM. These systems are modularly built and coated by a multi-material/multi-layer thermal protection system of ceramic and metallic compounds. The characteristic of low global heat input in LBM is utilized for the functional embedding. In the second part, the specific functional design and optimization for tailored smart components with embedded functionalities are addressed. Numerical and experimental validated results are demonstrated on a smart femoral hip stem.

Decision support system to select cover systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bostick, K.V.

1995-01-01

The objective of this technology is to provide risk managers with a defensible, objective way to select capping alternatives for remediating radioactive and mixed waste landfills. The process of selecting containment cover technologies for mixed waste landfills requires consideration of many complex and interrelated technical, regulatory, and economic issues. A Decision Support System (DSS) is needed to integrate the knowledge of experts from scientific, engineering, and management disciplines to help in selecting the best capping practice for the site

Tailoring electronic structure of polyazomethines thin films